Finally after 3 years of lobbying, and a hearing at the High Court in March 2008, a few weeks ago RES released the background noise data, and professional experts commissioned by Mike Hulme, who is spearheading the Group, have now carried out a preliminary analysis of this data.

This investigation shows that there are indeed serious errors in the data and in RES’ assessment of it. These errors mean that the noise impact of the development is actually greater than RES stated at the Planning Inquiry, and that the protective noise limits contained in the Planning Permission are set too high to offer protection.

Evidence from other wind farms shows that turbine noise CAN cause serious problems for local residents and that turbine noise CAN have impact on properties much further afield than RES has so far acknowledged.

The good news is that largely on the basis of this new evidence permission to take the case to the Court of Appeal has not only been granted but has been granted speedily and in emphatic terms — indicating that there is a strong case to answer.

The Court of Appeal has set a date of 24th and 25th of July 2008 and of course this means funding! Estimates are that a fund of at least £20,000 is required to underwrite costs, and donations and pledges to cover this are URGENTLY needed.

Support for the case to date has been tremendous, both from the local community and much further afield, showing the depth of feeling and concern over the building of an industrial-scale wind turbine power station so close to people’s homes. We have to defend our environment against this defective planning approval. Please help NOW by donating whatever you can.

Donations to the Appeal Fund (made out to ‘Den Brook Judicial Review Fund’) should be sent to: DBJRF c/o Nick Jewell, Lynderies, Heath, Spreyton EX17 5AN

For more information please visit our web site www.denbrookvalley.co.uk, email info@denbrookvalley.co.uk or telephone any of: Mike & Basia Hulme (01363 82220),
Bruce & Karen Everett (01647 231603), Nick Jewell (01647 231553), Claire Hodgson (01363 82628), Richard & Vicki Turner (01363 82876), Muriel Goodman (01837 82626), Ruth Harvey (01837 82838), Anne & Graham Ramsey (01647 24317).

Permission has been given to appeal the recent high court decision and we go to the Court of Appeal in only three weeks time, on 24th July — the second time we’ve been through the court system in only four months The Appeal will crucially re-examine the ‘installed capacity’ balancing procedures along with a recently discovered invalid and flawed noise assessment undertaken by the developer here in Devon.

After persevering for nearly 4 years we at last managed to obtain the developer’s noise monitoring data only a few weeks ago. This was not available at the Planning Inquiry nor at the High Court Hearing. The judge at that Hearing, whilst not upholding our claim, was severely critical of the developer for withholding this data. It was subsequently handed over and we learnt useful lessons in the process — if you are seeking to obtain your background noise and wind-speed data in order to independently evaluate your developer’s noise-assessment, contact us, we would be happy to assist.

An independent professional evaluation of the noise data here has revealed an erroneous analysis and prejudicially flawed noise assessment by a supposedly leading developer with Queen’s and other prestigious awards bestowed upon it. This recently discovered hard and factual evidence leads us to be cautiously optimistic that the Appeal Court will uphold our legal challenge and overturn the planning permission.

Success would set an important precedent to assist all concerned about noise and the vagaries of ‘installed capacity’, and trying to gain some justice in this tortuous wind farm debacle.

It will come as no surprise that we are strapped for funds to underwrite the potential £20k costs exposure for the Appeal Court case. We have raised a massive amount locally and nationally over the past 4 years to get this far but we urgently need your financial support to ensure we are able to take this important legal challenge through to a conclusion.

For more information and for details of where to send your contribution please visit our web site www.denbrookvalley.co.uk.

Many thanks.

2nd July 2008

Mike H
Den Brook Judicial Review Team
info@denbrookvalley.co.uk

Donations made out to “Den Brook Judicial Review Fund” can be sent directly to:

Nick Jewell, Lynderies, Heath, Spreyton, Devon, EX17 5AN, UK

If you would like to present your views during the hearing, you must attend the opening session at 10am on the first day. The Planning Inspector will take your details and schedule some time for you to speak, probably during the second week.

Click here for more information.

As you may know, there are plans to erect three huge wind turbines in the beautiful countryside of Benington.

These three turbines, reaching 400 foot each, will destroy the beauty and peace of such a serene area, and will be seen for many miles around.

I, myself, am not against wind energy. However, I feel that these turbines will destroy an area of extreme beauty, and are completely inappropriate.

The author Frederick Forsyth has said, ‘If a competition was held to find the most inappropriate site in England for three massive turbines, Benington would win’.

I felt moved to write a song in order to express my concerns at these plans.

I ask you all to visit my song ‘’Beauty Corruption’ on youtube, by clicking on this link (or just type Becky Godlee in youtube).

The video was filmed at the proposed turbine site. As it says in my song, ‘Just put it on the motorway, where it can be forgiven …’

You can also download the song in mp3 format from the website, at: www.stopbeningtonwindfarm.co.uk, where you can find details of how to write to the planners to express your views and concerns. We know that if enough people write, this inappropriately located scheme can be stopped.

Many thanks, and I hope you enjoy the song!

Becky Godlee (age 17)
email: becky@godlee.com

Go to: Stop Benington Wind Farm (click on one of the pictures below):

The District Council undertook a period of monitoring at our home last October. They came to measure the noise for an hour a night on 26 nights. On the basis of this they decided that there was no statutory noise nuisance, and although there were three minor breaches of the planning permission they did not feel it appropriate to prosecute. This “result” then went into the public domain and was published widely as a result of being incorporated in a BWEA release to its members. (Although no mention was made of the three minor breaches.) Statements based on this release were then submitted as proofs of evidence to several planning Inquiries across the UK. Some other statements, based on this information — but going further and attacking us personally for having hypersensitive hearing have also been sent to Development Control Council members in various Local Authorities, who were due to discuss planning applications in their own areas!

We complained to the Ombudsman about the way the whole noise complaint has been handled, and she has yet to report on this. However more information came to light last week when it became obvious, that for whatever reason, the turbines were only operating for a third to a half of their normal output last October. Thus all statements etc are based on flawed information and as no other month in the whole of the wind farm’s operation has ever been so quiet it is no wonder that the Council were able to decide that there was not a statutory nuisance … and yet there were still 3 breaches of condition.

As I said you really couldn’t make it up could you?

And we still have lost our home.

Jane Davis

Evidence for and against Npower renewables’ 18-turbine proposal at Middlemoor, near Alnwick, will be presented to a Planning Inspector at the Northumberland Hall.

The inquiry is expected to sit for about 12 days, with objectors, council chiefs, agencies and the developer making their cases for and against the scheme.

To keep readers fully informed, the Northumberland Gazette has set up this special section on its website to bring you the latest from the hearing, as it happens.