April 13, 2014
Scotland

‘Out of control’ SNP litter Scotland’s landscape with wind farms

By: Dean Herbert | Daily Express | Published: Sat, April 12, 2014 | www.express.co.uk

Scotland is now home to more than half of the UK’s wind turbines because of the SNP’s “out of control” green energy policies, it was revealed yesterday.

Figures revealed that, of 4,350 onhore wind turbines across Britain, Scotland has 2,315.

In addition to the existing windfarms scarring Scotland’s landscape, there are an additional 405 turbines under construction.

The figures, from Renewable UK, do not take into account other wind farms making their way through the planning process.

The figures have led to fresh calls for a moratorium on wind farm construction as councils struggle to cope with the number of planning applications.

Tory energy spokesman Murdo Fraser said: “It’s quite incredible to think that, despite only consuming less than 10 per cent of the UK’s energy, Scotland has to suffer 50 per cent of the wind turbines.

“This is a direct result of the SNP waving wind farm developers through, and outmuscling local councils when it comes to the decision-making process.

“It is ludicrous to put such emphasis on intermittent and unreliable energy sources, which can damage the landscape for thousands of residents and tourists.”

It comes just a month after it emerged that the Nationalist Government has lavished £1.8billion in subsidies on wind farm operators since 2007 to meet self-imposed renewable energy targets.

In 2012, the First Minister claimed that the spread of wind farms “enhances our appeal as a country”.

Linda Holt, of campaign group Scotland Against Spin, said: “The First Minister’s obsession with wind energy has made Scotland’s energy policy economically, socially and environmentally unsustainable. Scotland is well on the way to becoming a giant wind farm for the south-east of England, and it’s a terrible irony that a nationalist government has connived in the sell-off of one of our greatest assets.”

Concerns have also been raised by naturalists, who say that developers view remote areas as “easy targets” for wind farms.

A spokesman for the John Muir Trust said: “We have been concerned at the growing proliferation over the past five years of large scale wind farms across rugged wild land, especially in the Highlands. Because these upland locations are sparsely populated with few voters, energy companies and politicians tend to see them as a soft target.”

A spokesman for Energy Minister Fergus Ewing said: “The statistics simply reflect Scotland’s vast green energy potential. With a quarter of Europe’s offshore wind, a quarter of the continent’s tidal power and a tenth of its wave power potential, our renewable energy reserves are helping create many thousands of jobs, and bring investment and opportunity to communities across the country.”

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2014/04/13/out-of-control-snp-litter-scotlands-landscape-with-wind-farms/