January 16, 2008
England
England
Conservative prospective parliamentary candidate for North Cornwall Sian Flynn visited Bodmin Moor to gain first-hand experience of the impact a proposed wind farm would have on the local community.
Community Windpower Ltd has outlined plans for a £75 million scheme to build 20 wind turbines in the Davidstow woods area. The turbines will measure 80 metres to the hub and the blades will be 45.2 metres in length. The proposed height to tip is 125 metres.
The scheme has attracted criticism from neighbouring residents, despite the company making major changes to the scheme in an attempt to appease protestors.
In response, Ms Flynn recently tackled the heights of Brown Willy and Roughtor in an attempt to gauge the impact the proposed scheme would have.
She said: “I wanted to get a sense of the impact that the proposed wind turbines in the Davidstow area would have on this unspoiled landscape. As viewed from the tops, there can be no doubt that as well as the other objections to the proposals, the visual impact would be very considerable.
“I believe that we have a duty to care for the precious landscape that we have in North Cornwall, and to think very carefully before undertaking any project which would have a disproportionate impact on areas of outstanding natural beauty.”
Ms Flynn also recently attended a site meeting at Boscastle, to listen to presentations from South West Water on its proposal to site a sewage treatment plant in an area of outstanding natural beauty, and to hear the views of local residents.
She said: “Here too, the proposal would have a serious visual impact in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and, not surprisingly, people are very concerned indeed, and I heard cogent and reasoned objections to the current plan.
“But I also heard a clear counter proposal, for a site for the much needed sewage works that would command local support.
“In circumstances such as these, I’m firmly of the view that the voices of local people should be listened to, and I hope that the planning committee at Cornwall County Council will consider very carefully what they heard at the meeting.
“We are all custodians of a precious jewel that is North Cornwall, and the wrong decision here could have an impact far beyond Boscastle itself.”
16 January 2008
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2008/01/16/getting-feel-for-impact-of-proposed-wind-farm/