June 1, 2012
England

Residents claim they were not consulted over wind turbine scheme

By Craig Manning, Wirral Globe, www.wirralglobe.co.uk 1 June 2012

Opponents of an approved scheme for five wind turbines to be built on land at Wallasey claim they were not consulted.

The plans will see the construction of five, 50ft-tall turbines on land next to the former Max Spielman building on Cross Lane.

An application to build the electricity-generating turbines was submitted by a local business and subsequently agreed by Wirral Council.

The agreement to proceed was made under “delegated powers” which allow town hall planning officers to determine applications without the need for them to go before the planning committee.

Householders say they were unaware of the scheme and are now extremely unhappy, claiming the structures’ sweeping blades will create constant noise as well as being visually intrusive.

One, who asked not to be named, said residents have now written to the local authority complaining they were not informed of the proposals: “They just haven’t consulted with us about this at all.

“I’ve spoken with several people in this area and none of them knew anything about it.

“These turbines have been approved now so there’s probably not a lot we can do at this stage.

“We just want to make sure the council consults properly with people before pushing these things through the system.”

Permission was rubber-stamped at the council’s cabinet meeting of April 12 and a list of conditions imposed which must be met by developers.

The council disagrees consultation had not been thorough.

A spokeswoman said: “The standard consultation for any non-major planning application was undertaken.

“The adjacent property received a letter and a notice was put up at the site to let people know about the proposals.

“The council also notified Wirral Wildlife and consulted the Environment Agency, National Air Traffic Services and Merseyside Environmental Advisory Service prior to making a decision.”

The spokeswoman said no letters objecting to the scheme were received.

The conditions include insiting that work must be finished within three years and, before it starts, a landscaping scheme has to be completed.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2012/06/01/residents-claim-they-were-not-consulted-over-wind-turbine-scheme/