Residents have objected to the application for the meteorological mast | By Richard Evans, Local Democracy Reporter | 20 APR 2022 | www.dailypost.co.uk
A deferred planning application for a mast 30 metres taller than the Leaning Tower of Pisa will be discussed by Denbighshire’s planning committee on Wednesday (April 20). In January, the committee considered an application from RWE Renewables to erect the 90-metre-high meteorological mast on land at Mynydd Mynyllod in Llandrillo near Corwen.
RWE Renewables want to erect the mast, which would stand for three years, to collect wind data to see whether the field is suitable for a wind farm. The proposed mast would include flashing lights to warn passing aircraft. But, at January’s planning committee meeting, Denbighshire councillors deferred their decision.
Councillors delayed taking a vote following concerns about the mast’s visual impact on the surrounding area. The committee then asked RWE Renewables for more information, and the applicant has returned with a more detailed application. RWE Renewables has now submitted a “landscape and visual appraisal” in support of their application.
The application is minded to grant based on council planning officers’ advice. The site lies approximately 4.5km from the boundary of the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley Area of Natural Beauty and 5.5km from Snowdonia National Park.
Llandrillo Community Council is opposed to the plans, insisting the mast would have a detrimental impact on the surrounding landscape. The Ministry of Defence has insisted that the mast is fitted with aviation warning lights if it gets the go-ahead.
Several objecting residents have also written to Denbighshire to oppose the plans. They say the mast would have an “adverse impact” on tourism, the character of the surrounding landscape, and those living nearby.
One resident also claimed a previous temporary mast erected by Scottish Power was visually intrusive. Speaking in January, Cllr Gwyneth Ellis, the local member for Llandrillo, said: “There are wind turbines quite close, small ones, and they are visible from the village, so I suspect that mast will have a huge visual effect.”
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2022/04/21/plan-for-90-metre-mast-goes-back-before-committee-as-critics-warn-of-huge-impact-on-area/