May 23, 2011
England

Fears mount on wind farm

Maldon & Pickering Mercury, www.maltonmercury.co.uk 22 May 2011

Opposition is mounting to plans to set up a wind turbine farm at West Heslerton.

Now, local objectors and critics have been joined by the Ministry of Defence, English Heritage and the Council for the Protection of Rural England.

The plans, which have been submitted to Ryedale District Council by RWE npower has also attracted the ire of 24 parish councils as well as farmers and others in the area.

The company wants to install 10 wind turbines with a maximum height of 126m to the blade tips plus a sub-station and control building.

Janet Sanderson of the CPRE Ryedale branch said: “The developers could hardly have chosen a site with a more negative impact on the landscape if that had been their intention.

“The turbines will be visible from the top of Rosedale, from Ravenscar, from Flamborough Head, from a large area of the Wolds in the East Riding, and from much of Ryedale and the south of Scarborough District.

“A large part of this area is designated as the North York Moors National Park, as Heritage Coast, or as an Area of High Landscape Value in local plans.

“The northern escarpment of the Wolds, on which the turbine will be sited, is a landscape feature of major regional importance. Its significance has been stressed in numerous studies which formed the rationale behind its designation as an Area of High Landscape Value.

“The visual intrusion of this application is the foundation of our very strong objection to this proposal. We have further concerns regarding the proposal to remove hedgerows, the impact on endangered wildlife and the impact on scheduled ancient monuments and listed buildings.”

The Ministry of Defence said there would “unacceptable interference” to the radars at RAF Linton-on-Ouse and at Staxton Wold and in other cases such high wind turbines had had a detrimental effect on the performance of radars.

It could lead to the creation of “false” aircraft being detected or in other cases real aircraft might not be detected by the radars.

Dr Diane Green, inspector of Historic Buildings for the Yorkshire and Humber Region of English Heritage, said the setting of numerous heritage assets would be harmed.

She said: “The Vale of Pickering is significant for the diversity and continuity of its heritage assets and contains an unparalleled collection of buried intact prehistoric and later landscapes and structures, standing earthworks and ruins, a distinctive landscape and expansive vernacular architecture.”

A statement submitted from English Heritage to the council says they were “uncomfortable” about the scale of the impact of the wind farm on the landscape.

It adds that if planning permission is granted then there should be a “suitable and comprehensive” archaeological mitigation strategy as part of the conditions.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2011/05/23/fears-mount-on-wind-farm/