Residents are raging over plans for a huge wind farm. Around 10 turbines nearly as big as Blackpool Tower have been planned for a site near Marton. ...residents oppose the plans. They claim, ..."The desire to build wind farms is not based on local needs but is driven by the profit motives of the companies and by the greed and selfishness of the landowners involved.

One of Northumberland's longest-serving councillors has given his evidence to the Middlemoor inquiry, after years of being 'gagged' by local government rules. Political heavyweight John Taylor, who is county member for Longhoughton division and district representative for Hedgeley Ward of Alnwick District Council, was finally able to break his silence on Friday afternoon on the plans for 18 turbines near South Charlton. He said: ..."This is the first time that I have been able to comment from a personal point of view on the matter. "As I have said previously, I have lived and worked in Northumberland for most of my life and I feel very strongly that these proposals will have the most detrimental effect on the landscape.

After years of debate over the controversial wind farm and approval granted two years ago, construction has begun. It dominates the Louth Marsh landscape and the view from the Wolds. All 20 turbines are expected to be in place and operating early in the New Year. ...There were 137 letters of protest to the proposal and ELDC's Planning Committee initially refused the application. The controversial site was deemed hazardous to aircraft radar and military jets using RAF Donna Nook bombing range. Councillors also agreed that the visual impact on the Louth Marsh detracted from the spire of St James' Church, Louth.

DEVELOPERS may press on with plans for a controversial 12-turbine windfarm in North Wales even though a council rejected it this week, it emerged yesterday. Conwy councillors threw out the proposed Mwdwl Eithin scheme in Cerrigydrudion against the advice of officers, who recommended it for approval. ...Clwyd West AM Darren Millar welcomed Conwy councillors' refusal of the scheme which is in his constituency. Mr Millar, the Assembly shadow minister for the environment and planning, said: "This is great news for the countryside. The decision not to grant the application went against the recommendation of local authority planning officers, but represented the views of the majority of local residents.

MAGICAL, mystical and iconic views could be affected if a proposed wind farm in Northumberland is allowed to go ahead, a public inquiry heard yesterday. On day four of the public inquiry into an application to build 18 wind turbines at South Charlton near Alnwick, anti-wind-farm campaigners again clashed with experts speaking on behalf of nPower. ...Mr Stevenson said: "These turbines will introduce an element of dynamism into the environment. There is some evidence from other turbine sites that they become popular and may even become tourist attractions themselves."

After generating huge interest across Berwickshire and beyond, a controversial planning application has been rejected by Scottish Borders Council after it was decided that it contravened key council policies. Meeting on Monday, the Council's Development and Building Control Committee, decided to follow the recommendation of planning officials and unanimously put a halt to the plans to have a windfarm on Coldingham Moor. Since it was originally lodged last year, the application has sparked a vast difference in opinion, gathering responses on a local, national and even international level.

THE COMPANY behind plans to build a massive windfarm in Shetland intends to wait until next summer before submitting a planning application to allow a second study of the islands' peatlands. Viking Energy had initially hoped to have already submitted its planning documents, but the huge number of responses to a public consultation scuppered the company's timetable. ...During the initial consultation in spring this year, many local residents were concerned about the amount of peat which would have to be cleared to erect up to 192 turbines, each measuring up to 145 metres in height. There were also worries that disturbing the sensitive peat habitat could pollute burns and inshore waters.

DOWNSIZED proposals for a wind farm in a Moray forest are still visually and environmentally unacceptable, claim local residents. ...Locals say the development would scar a scenic landscape for nothing more than commercial greed. ...In 'The Northern Scot' last week, David Hodkinson, managing director of the firm's wind energy business, believed the development, on land owned by the Forestry Commission, now fitted with people's expectations in the area. ...However, the application met with strong opposition this week from residents whose homes border the site, which is around 800 metres above sea level to the south of Buckie. ...Dr Henderson said it was inconceivable to erect wind turbines, recently voted the No 1 eyesore in a BBC and MORI poll, at a time when Moray is developing a tourism strategy. "Once this process has been started it is iredeemable and you can't stop the juggernaut," she said.

Three different qualified professional landscape and visual assessors have reported on the proposed Crook Hill wind farm with the result of three different conclusions. The first conclusion is that the 12 turbine wind farm is acceptable since the "landscape and visual effects will be temporary and there would be no long term impacts"; the second conclusion was that no wind farm at this location would be acceptable; and the third conclusion was that a smaller wind farm at this location would be acceptable, shifting the balance to two to one in favour of a wind farm at the site. ...If two out of three landscape assessors agree the location is acceptable and the council rejects the application, it will be left up to an inspector at an inquiry to decide whether the scale of the Crook Hill wind farm is acceptable or not.

SILT run-off during the construction of a wind farm is believed to be the source responsible for the wiping out of valuable vegetation and a colossal decrease in wild Brown Trout fish stocks in one of Tyrone's hidden beauty spots. ...One source described the fish caught as "feeble and malnourished" and indicated that the "damage to the rare genetic strain was irreparable." Lough Lee has long been considered by angling tourists as one of the most unique freshwater fishing sites in Ireland or Britain. ...problems arose during the construction of the 9MW wind farm by leading company Airtricity, who was given planning permission to position turbines on the slope of Bin Mountain facing and in close proximity to the Lough.

Campaigners who have fought plans for a windfarm at Hethel were celebrating yesterday after the proposals were thrown out. South Norfolk councillors turned down the planning application by green-energy firm Ecotricity for three 120m turbines at car manufacturer Lotus's test track on Tuesday night. ...Grounds for refusal were opposition by the Ministry of Defence and the visual impact on the countryside. The MoD objected to the scheme because it would cause "unacceptable interference" to the air-defence radar at RAF Trimingham.

A NORTH Sutherland community stands to gain up to half a million pounds a year in community benefit from wind farms, it emerged this week. But the "pot of gold" has failed to impress some Strathy residents who this week angrily dismissed it as a sweetener, aimed at making them accept major changes to their local landscape. ...The power company wants to build a £90 million, 35-turbine development on the north side of Strathy and a follow-up 77-turbine development on the south side of the forest.

Thirteen giant wind turbines will soon be towering over valley homes and the Brecon Beacons National Park. Neath Port Talbot Council has approved controversial plans for a wind farm at Maesgwyn, between Banwen and Glynneath. ...There were 45 objections sent in by residents, and concerns were also raised at public meetings, as well as by ward councillors. The main source of grievance was the impact the turbines would have on the area's countryside, as well as on tourism.

Shocked residents are launching a campaign to stop the building of six giant wind turbines that would overlook Bodmin.Renewable energy company Ecotricity has proposals to erect the 330-feet high structures on land between Trebell Green and Resperry Cross, near Lanivet. People in the area claim the huge turbines would be visible for 40 miles and would dominate the local skyline. They say the turbines would be a blot on the landscape and are about to form an action group to fight the plans.

A REPORT into two proposed wind farms in Yorkshire and Lancashire has deemed the controversial schemes "acceptable" in landscape and visual terms. The proposed schemes for five 410ft high turbines on Todmorden Moor, Calderdale, and three turbines the same height at Reaps Moss, in Rossendale, have brought strong opposition. ..."The proposed wind farm would be a temporary feature that added a new chapter to the landscape's industrial history."

NEIGHBOURS have reacted cautiously to plans for a giant 100-metre wind turbine that would change the Alderney skyline for generations to come. The structure - almost twice the height of Nelson's Column - would be less than 250 metres from residential streets and tower over family homes. ..."I don't see why it cannot be away from the site and the power carried in via cables. "One hundred metre windmills have no place in family neighbourhoods." Carol Dowland, whose Francis Avenue home borders the waterworks, said: "I'm quite in favour of green energy and if it will save money it must be a good idea. "But it all depends on whether or not it is an eyesore.

The construction of windfarms could trigger the release of more carbon dioxide than the technology was created to reduce, according to an investigation into proposals for hundreds of giant turbines on the Western Isles. The warning has been highlighted by the Views of Scotland (VoS) pressure group which argues that developers routinely inflate their predictions of carbon savings and underestimate the effect of "aggressive construction techniques" associated with building turbines, particularly on peatland. ...Basing its audit on developers' construction data, VoS believes the windfarms would cause the emission of 500,000 tonnes of CO2 a year more than they might save. VoS chairman David Bruce said: "This paper illustrates the implications for every wind-power site proposed on peat, of which there are many in Scotland.

Massive new wind turbines could be on the horizon for the North-east. The structures would literally be jumbo-sized - with blades as long as a 747 jet. And today planners warned the 500ft-plus structures were a "serious" threat to the look of the landscape. The new generation turbines are being developed in the US by General Electric. An Aberdeenshire Council spokesman said: "The development of this new generation of larger wind turbines is a serious source of concern for us, especially in relation to landscape and visual issues. ...Lorraine Bolsinger, vice-president of GE's ecoimagination division, said: "The economics of longer wind turbines are going to be pretty compelling. "If you can put them in places where they're not eyesores, it'll be a win-win situation." But Aberdeenshire Council reckons it could be hard to hide a 500ft turbine. ..."We as a local authority need to view this type of development positively, but the industry has a responsibility too - they can't keep on developing ever-bigger structures with little obvious indication that potential adverse impacts on the landscapes of project sites have been fully considered."

A Devon council is calling on Energy Minister Malcolm Wicks to reverse a decision to allow a huge wind farm. Earlier this month Mr Wicks gave Devon Wind Power the go-ahead for a 22-turbine project at Fullabrook Down. ...Council leader Mike Harrison said the "landscape and people of North Devon have been sacrificed in the national interest". He added: "This is a classic example of the impact of centralised planning on a local community."

The company behind plans to build a wind farm off the north Norfolk coast says it hopes to have all the permissions it needs in place by the end of the year. But Scira Offshore Energy's plan to put around 88 turbines at Shreingham Shoal is still meeting opposition from locals. ...At a recent meeting of Plumstead Parish Council councillors said that ...they want to see an all cross country route that avoids all residential areas, takes into account areas of outstanding natural beauty and other environmental considerations.