August 31, 2012
England

Villagers’ posters blitz aiming to thwart plans for huge wind turbines

Derby Telegraph | www.thisisderbyshire.co.uk 31 August 2012

Posters have been put up in a village urging residents to oppose the construction of two wind turbines which are almost as tall as Nelson’s Column.

A planning application for the 45-metre-high turbines on land south of Burnaston Lane in Etwall has been made by Bowler Energy LLP.

It is the second application for the site by the same company. The first was withdrawn in May – but not before South Derbyshire District Council had indicated the likelihood it would approve the plans – after campaigners highlighted technical issues in the application.

Residents, who previously formed the campaign group Burnaston and Etwall Residents Against Turbine Exploitation (Berate), are behind the posters. They are calling for villagers to send their objections to the plan to the district council by September 18, when the next council planning meeting will take place.

The posters point out that, by allowing the turbines to go ahead, it would not conform with the district council’s policy that “seeks to ensure that the character of the countryside is safeguarded and protected”.

The previous application attracted dozens of objections and Etwall Parish Council also voted against the proposal.

Andy Holgate, who is a member of the campaign group, said he had been heartened by the district council’s decision this week to refuse planning permission for a wind turbine in the Woodville and Hartshorne area.

He said: “Council planning officers had recommended the turbine go ahead but councillors voted against it.

“We are hopeful that when the Etwall application reaches the district council, councillors will reject our wind turbine plan as well. Two turbines are planned for the Etwall area and they would be only about 400 metres from the nearest houses and just 50 metres from a public footpath.

“There have been numerous reported structural failures nationally relating to turbines and their blades and they will be visually intrusive.”

Etwall householder Martin Ride said: “As residents, we do not vote for councillors and pay our council taxes for the privilege of having our communities damaged by others, with no benefit at all to community but with massive profits for devel- opers.”

A district council spokesman confirmed the application was still to be determined and said: “Various checks and reports are still being carried out but the application will be heard at the earliest opportunity.”

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2012/08/31/villagers-posters-blitz-aiming-to-thwart-plans-for-huge-wind-turbines/