This is the latest article from the campaign group:
Many people in the local community will now be aware of the proposal by the Swedish state owned energy company Vattenfall to construct a wind farm on land at Nocton, Dunston and Potterhanworth Fens. Since the project was first announced in December 2013 I have been active in supporting the local community group PNF in opposing the development. From my discussions with local residents it is apparent that whilst people are aware of the proposal many residents have commented that they understand it is not going ahead or they will not see the turbines and therefore will not be affected if it is built.
What is very clear is that few people recognise the enormous scale of this proposal. The current proposal is for 20 turbines with a height to blade tip of 149.5 metres (452ft). In other words more than the height of Lincoln Cathedral, more than three times the height of the silos at Bardney sugar refinery, more than three times the height of Nocton church spire.
This would be one of the largest onshore wind farms in the UK and the turbines some of the tallest. The local villages and hamlets will have sight of the turbines and Vattenfall’s own plan of the turbine visibility shows the turbines to be visible for up to 35 kms (22miles) i.e. way beyond Lincoln and clearly visible from the Lincolnshire Wolds which is nationally designated 'An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty' (AONB).
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| Montage view from B1188 to Nocton Fen |
Whilst the Conservative government have pledged to end subsidies for onshore wind farms I asked Vattenfall if removal of the subsidy would influence their plans for this wind farm and was told that continuing with the development was not dependent on receiving a subsidy. At this stage Vattenfall are forging ahead with the, planning application environmental assessments, design constraints and the legal orders and consents required by the National Planning Policy Framework. Formal community consultation is also a legal requirement which is the reason for the various public exhibitions and regular electronic newsletters by Vattenfall.
Whilst the ineffectiveness of onshore wind farms to generate a reliable significant source of electricity is widely reported by experts, this is not a material planning consideration. Surprisingly, currently neither is the impact on the health of local residents or the reduction in property values.
The key planning issues for the proposed wind farm at Nocton Fen will be the detrimental impact on the local and distant landscape character, the cumulative impact on landscape character from other planned wind farms, impact on the ecology of the Fen, impact on above ground heritage buildings and sites, visual impact on local residents and houses including the “setting” of the villages within a potential wind farm landscape, noise and radar interference (MOD).
The cumulative impact of wind farms on the character of the landscape is now seen as an important planning consideration with the developer for the large Heckington Fen wind farm, Ecotricity, having recently issued a plan of the turbine visibility for Nocton Fen combined with Heckington Fen, which clearly shows both wind farms visible from the villages local to the Nocton Fen development, which is not surprising considering the flat terrain, uninterrupted long views and size of the turbines.
If you are opposed to this development it is important you attend the Vattenfall formal exhibitions at the various village halls planned for June and July and register your opposition.
I would also ask you to support PNF in their campaign against the wind farm by registering at:
www.protectnoctonfen.org.uk or email: ProtectNoctonFen@hotmail.com or by post to:
PNF,
3 Wasps Nest,
Nocton Fen,
Lincoln, LN4 2AZ
Geoff Ward
Having spoken in support of this proposal April last year to a roomful of concerned residents the feeling I got was that the majority of people understood the benefits of wind farms but just didn't want them on their horizon. This is a dilemma that we have to address if we intend to curb our reliance on imported energy and get serious about reducing carbon emissions. Onshore wind is an effective and efficient generator of low carbon electricity, this report by the Royal Academy of Engineering confirms that fact.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.raeng.org.uk/publications/reports/wind-energy-implications-of-large-scale-deployment
There is little doubt that this proposal would have a significant impact on the local skyline and in varying degrees on the residents that live nearby, but this impact does depend on an individuals perception of the overall benefits of the turbines to their community and to society as a whole.
The perceived negative effect of wind farms on house prices is obviously a major consideration for individual householders and the introduction of a payment scheme funded through central government that compensates those homes most clearly affected by wind farm deployment would make sense, but in view of a recent LSE report on the effects of onshore wind on house prices would not be a straightforward policy.
http://www.spatialeconomics.ac.uk/textonly/SERC/publications/download/sercdp0159.pdf
This report went against the conclusions of previous studies by declaring a link between the visibility of a wind farm and a negative effect on house prices. Aware of the contradiction of other studies the LSE reported that it was only those houses in direct vision of a wind farm that suffered an apparent fall in value and that those houses that did not have a direct view of the turbines appeared to register a small increase in value. This ,they explained, might account for the "nil" effect conclusion of previous studies. So if this report is correct it would seem that just the sight of the turbines from a property is enough to downgrade it's desirability,if you live in an adjoining property without sight of the turbines your property can go up in value. Like I said, not straightforward.
However even if an individual compensation scheme was introduced I suspect that this would not deter those who have successfully demonised wind farms in our county. In my view we must face the facts and rapidly de-carbonise our energy system and whichever way we achieve it we should not dismiss a generator of proven effectiveness just because we don't like the look of it.
The amount of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere is now at a global level of 400 parts per million and rising. The last time it was at this level humans didn't exist. We are leaving our children with an awful legacy of climatic change and resource limitation and doing something about it has to mean some kind of sacrifice for our generation, business as usual is an immoral option.
Hi James and thanks for your comment.
ReplyDeleteI see from recent statistics the UK is producing some 17 TWh of electricity from onshore wind in 2014, as compared to 13 TWh for offshore. However, both are forecast to be producing about 10% of the UK's energy requirements by 2020.
http://www.renewableuk.com/en/renewable-energy/wind-energy/index.cfm
Given the public outcry about onshore wind farms blighting the countryside, especially in the East of England where they seem to be encircling and saturating the area... one would have thought to avoid widespread bad publicity and to get a better Press on renewables, energy companies and the Government would seek to promote turbines offshore more actively. Whilst I appreciate the installation of offshore turbines is more expensive, I believe the wind out to sea is more consistent than that on land and therefore these installations are more efficient and effective in their operation.
I see you make no mention of the wider environmental impacts arising from the erection/installation of wind turbines - with the construction of access roads, links to main electricity infrastructure, the environmental impact from tons and tons of concrete used in construction, the sourcing of rare-earth elements that are used in the turbines, nor of the fact that the site will become 'brown field' at the end of the 25 year operation phase... and what that might mean for local peoples after the lifespan of the 'farm', on what has previously been excellent farmland and green belt land.
http://instituteforenergyresearch.org/analysis/big-winds-dirty-little-secret-rare-earth-minerals/
Furthermore, it also important to consider what has happened in Germany who have promoted renewables to a greater degree than the UK - where electricity bills are soaring and the population is effectively funding the subsidies the wind energy company profits.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/germanys-expensive-gamble-on-renewable-energy-1409106602
I am all for debate and discussion - but I do feel it is extremely important to have a full and frank debate of all aspects of wind energy... and not just those points that suit the lobbyists cause, in whichever camp they sit.