Mighty River turbine trim ‘cosmetic’
Credit: By GRANT MILLER - Manawatu Standard, www.stuff.co.nz 2 Feburary 2010
Seventeen turbines have been chopped from Mighty River Power’s planned Turitea Wind Farm near Palmerston North – but opponents say the changes don’t go far enough.
Opposition group Tararua-Aokautere Guardians (TAG) president Kevin Low said the power company had promised a redesign of its proposal, but produced only “a light trim”.
The company embarked on a redesign in September after it appeared its proposal was unlikely to get the go-ahead from a Government-appointed board of inquiry. The new layout plan was released yesterday.
More than half the turbine zones originally proposed have now been either moved or dumped.
Mighty River Power’s amended application said the changes “significantly reduced the project’s landscape effects from the majority of viewpoints”.
Most of the deleted turbine zones were at Bryants Hill – the turbines that would have been nearest Palmerston North, whose council slammed the project as “in your face”.
The maximum turbine height would remain at 125 metres.
Landscape architect Stephen Brown, who led the review, said the removal or relocation of the most prominent turbine zones “far outweighs” any benefit from changing turbine heights.
Mr Low said the changes by Mighty River Power were cosmetic and lacked rigour.
“The changes don’t go far enough,” he said. “We don’t believe anyone should have to live closer than 2km to a turbine.”
TAG member Adrian Cookson said the group’s ecological concerns had not been addressed.
The integrity of the Turitea Reserve – where 60 turbines would still be built – had not been seriously considered, he said.
Palmerston North Mayor Jono Naylor said the city council would get its experts to examine the impact of the changes, then make a submission to the board of inquiry.
Last year, Mr Naylor indicated the council was surprised by the scale of Mighty River Power’s proposed farm. Yesterday, he wouldn’t be drawn on whether the changes went far enough.
AT A GLANCE
Up to 104 2.3MW turbines on 105 potential zones – 60 within Turitea Reserve and 45 on adjacent private properties.
Alternatively, 96 3MW turbines.
21 turbine zones deleted and 44 moved to more “visually recessive positions”.
All the turbine zones that were cut were on private property, many of them at Bryants Hill – the proposed turbines that were nearest Palmerston North.
Maximum turbine height of 125 metres, from base to blade tip.
The farm would have the capacity to generate a maximum 288MW of electricity – down from a maximum of 336MW.
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THE STORY SO FAR
2005: Palmerston North City Council selects Mighty River Power as its partner to develop a wind farm on council-owned land on the Tararua Range.
2006: The city council changes the purpose of the Turitea nature reserve so that renewable electricity can be generated there. In 2007, the High Court rules that this is legal.
July 2008: Mighty River Power announces it will seek consent to build up to 131 turbines at the Turitea Reserve and on adjacent private property.
December 2008: Environment Minister Nick Smith decides the Turitea Wind Farm proposal should be heard by a national board of inquiry, instead of local decision-makers.
January 2009: Nine turbine sites are cut from the proposal because of their proximity to houses.
July 2009: The hearing starts. Mighty River Power proposes up to 121 turbines on up to 126 turbine zones.
September 2009: The state-owned power company says a landscape architect will lead a review of the farm’s layout.
October 2009: The hearing wraps up for the year.
February 2010: The redesign is released and submitters are given a chance to comment.
March 2010: The hearing resumes.
Tags: Wind power, Wind energy
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