June 5, 2013
England

Opponents to Bicton wind farm bid rally again

Written by Adam Luke | News & Crier | 05 June 2013 | www.cambridge-news.co.uk

A final call was issued this week for residents to oppose resurrected plans for a controversial wind farm on a historic airfield, submitted despite repeated past rejections.

Broadview Energy wants to build three turbines up to 125m on Kimbolton airfield, near the villages of Kimbolton, Stow Longa, Catworth and Tilbrook.

In 2012, a planning application for the four turbines of a similar height on the same site was rejected following a public inquiry from the Planning Inspectorate, when inspector Paul Jackson said “the sensitive character of this valley landscape would be seriously adversely affected”.

However, despite continued objections from five local parish councils, a new planning application was entered in April for a Bicton windfarm and is due for a decision in Ausgust.

Richard Murphy is chairman of the Stop Bicton Wind Farm campaign group. He said changes made to the new application are “so marginal as to be worthless”.

He said: “This application comprehensively fails to address the criticisms the Government inspector raised at the inquiry for the previous application.

“It is still the wrong scheme in the wrong place and a classic case of a well-subsidised developer riding roughshod over the wishes of local residents.”

Since Broadview’s first application, a solar park has been built next to the proposed wind farm site.

Mr Murphy added: “We have chosen to do our bit for renewables as a community by supporting the solar farm. The waste of money to council taxpayers that this application represents is nothing short of scandalous in these straitened economic times. Broadview should stop trying to bully the community into submission and take their ill-thought-through scheme off the table.”

But a spokesman for Broadview Energy said the proposed farm could generate enough clean electricity to meet the average annual requirements of as many as 5,260 households.

He said: “The Bicton site is an excellent location for the proposed wind farm which is capable of making a valuable contribution towards reducing both carbon emissions and our dependence on imported fossil fuels.”

Comments closed on the proposals yesterday and Huntingdonshire District Council’s planning committee will meet on August 2.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2013/06/05/opponents-to-bicton-wind-farm-bid-rally-again/