August 1, 2012
England

MP’s warning to quarrying firm over wind turbine plan

By Jenny Moody | www.uttoxeter-news.co.uk 1 August 2012

Uttoxeter’s MP has warned a quarrying company not to underestimate the damage it is causing to community relations after submitting plans for a giant wind turbine.

Andrew Griffiths has vowed to continue supporting campaigners against the 78- metre (255ft) high turbine at Uttoxeter Quarry, in Spath, after Aggregate Industries and AGRenewables submitted a planning application to Staffordshire County Council.

Mr Griffiths criticised the move and said said: “It is not surprising that Aggregate Industries has decided to press ahead with this application, regardless of the worries and concerns of the local residents, because they are clearly putting profit ahead of the local community.

“I would issue a warning to any residents in Staffordshire, or elsewhere in the country that if they have a quarry run by Aggregate Industries, there is a chance that any time now they will be faced with an application for a wind turbine. I don’t think Aggregate Industries should underestimate the damage it is doing to its reputation and the relationship it has with the communities around its sites.”

As previously reported, the application to the county council follows a period of public consultation where the companies were keen to address community concerns around visual impact and reduced the maximum height of the proposed turbine from 87 metres to 78 metres.

It was received by the council on July 13 and is now ‘being validated’ by the authority.

Last week, the status of the application changed to ‘invalid’ as the county council was seeking additional information from Aggregate Industries.

However, the application’s staus reverted back to ‘valid’ yesterday morning.

Campaigners from Uttoxeter Wind Turbine Action Group (UWAG) said they were ‘disappointed’ the firms haddecided to press ahead with the application and plan to let residents know how they can object to the application.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2012/08/01/mps-warning-to-quarrying-firm-over-wind-turbine-plan/