October 28, 2014
Wales

Protestors march to make voices heard on pylons

Rebecca Cole | The Free Press | 27 October 2014 | www.denbighshirefreepress.co.uk

A throng of protestors marched across Denbighshire at the weekend to fight plans for a power line.

Pylon the Pressure action group, politicians, businesspeople and members of the public joined forces on Saturday, October 25 to make their voices heard as they battle against Scottish Power Manweb’s (SP) plan to connect the Clocaenog Forest wind farm, recently given the go ahead, to the National Grid at St Asaph.

More than 80 campaigners took part in the 14-mile walk, which followed the route the proposed pylons will take via Peniel, Henllan and Bontnewydd.

Iona Edwards-Jones, deputy chair of Pylon the Pressure, was spurred on by the healthy turnout which included MPs Chris Ruane and David Jones as well as Denbighshire county councillors such as Meirick Lloyd Davies and a whole host of adults and children keen to show their support.

She said: “We were very pleased with the interest, we had more than I thought we would.

“It shows how strongly people feel about it.”

She claimed that SP had not properly consulted the public and had misled them about what the “eyesore” pylons would look like.

“Because of the way Scottish Power have consulted it’s easy for them to get communities to battle against each other over where the route will go,” she added.

“But this walk was a good way to show that we’re a strong community and we’re sticking together.”

The event has spurred campaigners on to continue their fight against what Dyfrig Hughes, chair of Pylon the Pressure, described as an “exploitation” of Wales similar to the Tryweryn incident which saw a Welsh village flooded to make way for a reservoir to provide water for parts of Merseyside.

“Our unspoilt landscapes are one of our greatest assets,” he said, “and to erect pylons across our fields, forests and hills is deplorable.”

Speaking after the event Mr Ruane commended the “absolutely fantastic turnout” and said: “This issue has aroused passions that have been clearly demonstrated and I hope it will force more concessions out of the energy companies.”

Conwy Council has also thrown its support behind the anti-pylon campaign by passing a notice of motion demanding “all cabling running from the North Wales Wind Farms Connection be placed underground and not via overhead pylons”.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2014/10/28/protestors-march-to-make-voices-heard-on-pylons/