July 26, 2011
England

Plans for turbine at farm met with wind of opposition

Scunthorpe Telegraph, www.thisisscunthorpe.co.uk 26 July 2011

Plans for a wind turbine in a North Lincolnshire village have been met with a volley of opposition.

The Sheffield-based firm Rotary Engineering has submitted a planning application to construct the turbine at College Farm in Garthorpe.

North Lincolnshire Council’s planning committee will consider the scheme at a meeting tomorrow and will vote on whether or not it can proceed.

Officers at the authority have recommended permission be granted for the structure, which would measure 24.6m to its hub and 34m to the tip and would serve the farm.

But people in the village have signalled their opposition to the turbine, which they claim would be sited too close to homes, as well as creating a road safety hazard and affecting residents through noise and flicker.

Garthorpe and Fockerby Parish Council chairman Ron Gilleard said: “We feel it is too close to the village.

“We think shadow flicker would be a problem on the road between Garthorpe and Luddington in the evenings when the sun is setting behind it in the west.

“As well as affecting the road, there are several houses there. We feel it is too close to the village and too close to several houses in particular – and there is a noise aspect, too.

“The planners seem to have disregarded noise or almost any comment that some of the objectors have made.”

A report prepared by North Lincolnshire Council planning officers for the committee reveals correspondence from the parish council is among 33 letters of objection to the plans received by the authority, along with one letter of support.

A petition against the development with 163 signatures has also been submitted to the authority.

After reviewing the reasons for objections, the officers concluded that the turbine would not be detrimental to the area and therefore recommended planning permission be granted.

The report states: “It is considered that the erection of one turbine in this location will not be harmful to residential amenities, landscape, ecology, archaeology, highway safety or heritage assets, and that sufficient information has been provided to allow full consideration of all the relevant issues.

“The application is recommended for approval.”

Nobody from Rotary Engineering was available for comment.

Now councillors will meet to decide whether the application should go ahead at Pittwood House on Ashby Road, Scunthorpe, at 2pm tomorrow.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2011/07/26/plans-for-turbine-at-farm-met-with-wind-of-opposition/