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Wind turbines: East Midlands MEP Roger Helmer claims they are pushing up air fares
Credit: By ISAAC CROWSON | Derby Telegraph | October 31, 2014 | www.derbytelegraph.co.uk ~~
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Translate: FROM English | TO English
East Midlands Euro MP Roger Helmer claims wind turbine problems are adding to the cost of people’s overseas holidays.
The controversial UKIP politician said the National Air Traffic Service (NATS) has been funding upgrades to equipment.
This was made necessary, he said, to allow the agency to operate more effectively in “the face of interference from wind turbines”.
The news comes after it was revealed this month that the two wind turbines in Spondon will not be fully operational until December, after the turbines were in a “sensitive area” for radar equipment at East Midlands Airport.
Mr Helmer, the party’s energy spokesman, is a long-standing opponent of wind energy and said his latest findings were “mind-boggling”.
Mr Helmer said NATS was funded by levies on the airline industry so “the man in the street” is paying for the upgrades, either as a passenger or customer of goods transported by air.
Mr Helmer said: “The first phase of this programme is costing £14m. I shall be writing to NATS to ask for its best estimate of the total cost of the programme.
“And it’s being done explicitly to enable more wind turbine applications to be approved.
“The costs and the waste involved in the wind industry are mind-boggling.
“All in pursuit of climate policies which themselves are hugely open to question.
“In primitive and historic communities, they conducted human sacrifices to appease the weather gods and to ensure good harvests.
“Our modern climate policies are equally absurd and ineffectual.
“But I suppose we should be grateful that in these modern times all we are sacrificing is wealth and prosperity.”
Mr Helmer has represented the East Midlands in the European Parliament for 15 years.
The two 180-metre structures at Spondon, named Winnie and Tony, were installed last December but, according to documents seen by the Derby Telegraph, they will not be operational until this December.
The report said the turbines could only be operational if East Midlands Airport approved the safety of the system being installed.
In response to Mr Helmer’s claims, a spokesman for NATS highlighted examples of its good work.
The company has signed a “pioneering” new deal with two wind turbine developers that could unlock up to 2.2GW of new wind energy across the UK, according to the company.
Richard Deakin, NATS chief executive, said: “This is a landmark agreement that heralds a significant technical advance in mitigating the radar interference from wind turbines,
“It unlocks significant potential for wind-based power generation and indeed for the UK in meeting its carbon reduction targets.”
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