I read comments on your website about the proposed wind farm development at Harthill in Rotherham, which contained comments in favour of the development for our future good and for the good of the environment.
Formerly, I also naively believed we had to put turbines somewhere and that companies were building these structures for the greater good. However, when I was asked to look at the archaeological report submitted by the developer’s consultants, Oxford Archaeology North, I discovered this was not the case.
It was full of assumptions and inaccuracies. Their website publicly declared that they could help developers to ‘be seen to be doing the right things’, to get their proposals past the planning department.
The developer declared in their first report that they would look at the archaeology around the site and ignored evidence outright until I pointed it out to them. To get around my findings they narrowed their area of interest and again ignored evidence until I pointed it out to them again. Finally they narrowed their area of interest to within the footprint of the structures themselves!
They carried out a field walk when crops were knee high! Not surprisingly they declared there was no archaeology on the site. That is not true.
Access to the proposed development at Loscar Farm is via Packman Lane, a nine foot wide country lane. The developer wants to widen the road from nine to 18 feet so lorries could gain access, travelling a distance of approximately two miles.
That would mean that a two mile stretch of the road would be widened. This also means that two miles of hedgerows would be removed destroying wildlife habitats.
Wind turbines have a lifespan of approximately 25 years. Companies receive a Government subsidy of £250,000 per turbine, per year for 25 years. The landowner will receive £10,000 per turbine per year for 25 years.
That is a guaranteed income and who can blame them for chasing this money.
Paul Rowland
Archaeological Spokesperson, Harthill Action Group
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2008/03/19/cash-behind-wind-turbine-plan/