July 20, 2013
Scotland

Residents unite to fight windfarm plans

The Press and Journal | 20 July 2013 |

Nearly 100 Strathbogie residents have banded together to fight plans they believe will turn the area into “windfarm alley”.

Peter Oosterhof, of the Gartly Wind Partnership, wants to build eight 250ft turbines at Hill of Corskie, Gartly, near Huntly.

The farmer, who has land at the site as well as in Buchan, previously applied for consent to build four 328ft masts on the hill five years ago but the proposals were thrown out amid concerns about their detrimental visual and landscape impact. Now he has revised the proposals and believes they offer a better solution despite doubling the mast numbers.

However locals – who objected to the 2008 plans – believe the application is still too “overbearing” for the area and have formed the Stop Hill of Corskie Turbines (SHOCT) group to fight it.

Spokesman Andrew King, whose home is less than a mile from one of the turbines, said: “The new proposal will have a greater impact locally than the original, as there are now twice as many turbines.”

But Mr Oosterhof said he thought the turbines were a better fit for the area, and would be less prominent on the Marr landscape. He said he still believed the original proposal for four turbines was a “good one”.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2013/07/20/residents-unite-to-fight-windfarm-plans/