October 3, 2014
Scotland

Torwood wind turbines generate fresh complaints

by Kirsty Beaton, Published on the 02 October, 2014, falkirkherald.co.uk

Over 200 complaints have been made to one councillor about giant wind turbines 
installed near Torwood.

Two 125-metre structures were installed in the last couple of weeks with a further two to be built at the site at Tod Hill Farm.

Councillor Baillie Billy Buchanan described the two turbines as ‘monstrous’ and said he had been inundated with calls from angry residents since they appeared.

Baillie Buchanan said: “It’s a crying shame these huge turbines have been allowed to be built – they have destroyed our landscape.

“These ruin the look of the area, you can see them for miles around, in fact a friend was in Dunblane and said they could be seen from there. I think they should never have been allowed to be built and things will get worse when the other two are installed.”

The turbines are situated adjacent to Glenbervie Golf Club on the road to Denny and are partly owned by the local community. This year the communities in Larbert and Denny will get £48,000 from the owners of the wind farm, Future Spectrum Energy and the proceeds will increase each year.

Falkirk Council officers urged councillors to refuse planning permission for the development, because of its proximity to housing and the impact it would have on the landscape. The committee agreed, refusing plans in 2011. However the decision was overturned by the Scottish Government.

Mr Buchanan, who is convenor of Falkirk Council Planning Committee, added: “I want the community to know this was not a Falkirk Council decision but a Holyrood one and I am not happy about this blot on the horizon.”

Eric Appelbe chairman of Larbert, Stenhousemuir and Torwood Community Council said they had received no complaints about the wind farm. He added: “I personally don’t like them, but the community seems more concerned about the possibility of fracking in the area than wind farms.”

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2014/10/03/torwood-wind-turbines-generate-fresh-complaints/