April 20, 2012
Scotland

Sma’ Glen Protection Group going to Holyrood

by Katy Gordon, Strathearn Herald, icperthshire.icnetwork.co.uk 20 April 2012

Anti-wind farm activist Maureen Beaumont will be taking her cause to Edinburgh next week.

Maureen, along with other members of the Sma’ Glen Protection Group 2, an organisation set up to fight plans for a nine turbine installation on the Abercairny Estate, near Gilmerton, will take part in a march on Wednesday (April 25) to Holyrood organised by Communities Against Turbines Scotland (CATS).

Maureen explained: “The march is taking place to support CATS and Donald Trump when they appear before a Parliamentary committee examining Scottish renewable energy targets.”

She added: “The main aim of CATS is to make the Government take notice and have a moratorium on any future developments of wind turbines until they can prove that the construction of wind farms are safe, reliable, cost effective, save CO2 and will not destroy rural life and tourism jobs.”

The issue has become more prominent with Mr Trump’s involvement in the anti-windfarm movement.

He recently claimed that the continued proliferation of wind farms in Scotland was “financial suicide” for the country.

However, Maureen noted that the Sma’ Glen Protection Group 2 should not “be read as support for Donald Trump but as an opportunity to capitalise on the publicity generated on the day to highlight the negative impacts wind turbines are having on the landscape, natural heritage, residential amenities and on the pockets of the people of Scotland”.

She added “all like-minded people are very welcome to join the march and let politicians know how passionate we all are about these issues”.

In a written submission to the renewables inquiry, Maureen, who is also the chair of East Strathearn Community Council, said: “The future energy needs of our country are being addressed by an unholy coalition between speculative developers and landowners.

“This piecemeal, target-driven approach, which is stretching local communities and planning systems to the limit cannot be the optimum method of formulating and driving forward the future energy needs of our country.

“We need security of supply at an affordable price – to achieve this we must take a step back and re-assess all our options in a non-political way, based on all the scientific and engineering evidence available.”


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2012/04/20/sma-glen-protection-group-going-to-holyrood/