January 16, 2014
England

Villagers in battle to stop windfarm plan

The Garstang Courier | 16 January 2014 | www.garstangcourier.co.uk/

A new protest group has thrown down the gauntlet to developers considering siting a wind farm at St Michael’s on Wyre.

Members of the group were due to attend a meeting of St Michael’s Parish Council last night after requesting that the issue over the possible wind farm at Cuckoo Wood be debated.

More than 30 “Say No To Wind Farm” placards have been put up around the village and flyers have been distributed.

The group says their village and its “proud heritage” is 
under threat and that the issue could divide their community.

In a statement the protestors’ steering group declared: “It is totally inappropriate for these huge turbines to be built adjacent to any village community.

“The number of local 
people strongly opposed to this particular proposal is growing and we will continue to fight it for our own sakes and for future generations of people wishing to live in the lovely village of St Michaels.

“This is not a legacy that we want to hand down!”

No-one from RWE was available for comment as the Courier went to press.

A statement on RWE’s website says: “We are investigating
 the potential for a wind farm, known as Cuckoo Wood, on land located 1.5km north west of St. Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire.

“The project is at a very early
stage, but if successful the site could make an important 
contribution towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions and tackling climate change.

“Wind farms, such as the proposed Cuckoo Wood Wind Farm, are also not reliant on the import of fossil fuels such as gas or oil, and so contribute towards the security of the UK’s energy supply.”

The company held a “Meet the Developer” day at St Michael’s VillageHall in September and this was attended by more than 100 people.

In the same month RWE installed an anemometer met mast.

The mast will remain for three years and will be used to collect data such as wind speed and turbulence details to help inform the design of a wind farm.

The RWE website details plans to hold a larger public exhibition early this year.

Local resident and steering group member Judith Hunter said that any windfarm would have “a terrific impact on this village.”

The group detailed its concerns saying: “As well as the likely damage to villagers’ individual situations (eg. from noise, flicker created by sunlight through the rotating blades, destruction of the beautiful views, possible impact on residents’ property values) there is the increased risk of harm to the many migratory birds that fly through the Cuckoo Wood area.”

There are also concerns about the affects on tourism, drainage and flight paths for light aircraft.


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2014/01/16/villagers-in-battle-to-stop-windfarm-plan/