September 4, 2014
Scotland

Wind turbines in regional park rejected

Inverclyde Now | Wednesday, 03 September 2014 | www.inverclydenow.com

Planning officials have refused permission for two wind turbines in the hills between Greenock and Loch Thom.

The turbines were proposed for Scroggy Bank and would have been be 30-metres (100-feet) high at the hub and 45-metres (150-feet) high at the blade tip. They would have been about 180 metres away from two existing 36-metre telecommunication towers.There were 52 objections to the plan.

Inverclyde Council planning officials refused the application as they felt the turbines would create an “unexpected and dominant feature” because of their height, scale and prominence within this part of the landscape of Clyde Muirshiel Regional Park and their closeness to the path network. They agreed with objectors that this would be to the “detriment of visual amenity and tourism.”

Head of regeneration and planning Stuart Jamieson wrote in his report that the visual impact on walking routes nearby and the wider landscape was of concern.

He added: “Scroggy Bank itself is a prominent and attractive landscape feature in the landscape and in the views across Loch Thom. While its landscape quality is partially devalued by the existing communications towers, these are fixed structures, unlike wind turbines which are animated and, I consider, a more significant landscape intrusion.”

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2014/09/04/wind-turbines-in-regional-park-rejected/