‘Deeply worried’: We live on idyllic Scots tourist island – but it’s being sacrificed by developers who want to ruin it 

An estate owner says the island of Skye is being “sacrificed” to wind energy companies ”like the Congo was developed for oil” – with more than 130 turbines in planning at present.

Charles MacDonald, who owns more than 900 hectares at Skeabost Estate in the north of Skye, said the developments threatened “changing the character of the island”.

He added that the island is being developed for wind much like the “Congo was developed for oil”.

Multiple renewable companies, headquartered in countries including Spain, Italy, Sweden and Scotland, are waiting for nine planning applications to be determined for island sites.

Four applications are in planning – of which one is due to be heard by a public inquiry – two have been consented and three are in the scoping stage.

Two of the applications will replace existing wind turbines with 200-metre-tall models.

Meanwhile, an upgrade of the overhead powerline from Skye to Fort Augustus to increase grid capacity and support the developments is also proposed, along with two workers’ camps for 800 people near Broadford.

Mr MacDonald said: “We are like the Congo, we are being developed for wind like the Congo was developed for oil.

“Half a dozen windfarms will accrue a massive benefit to the people who own these windfarms – but the island is being sacrificed.”

Mr MacDonald said he had offers from three windfarm developers to build on his own land but had so far rejected them given he was “deeply worried” about the overall impact of windfarms on the island’s character.

He said: “I think this is going to change the nature of the island completely. I have some land of my own and I have been approached by three different developers.

“It is massive money, it took me a year to think about what to do and – so far – I have done nothing, I have not gone for them.

“I made this decision on principle but I am not doing this because I am being a stubborn nimby, I am doing it because I am deeply worried about what it will do to the island.

“Skye is the second most important tourist destination in Scotland after Edinburgh in terms of visitor numbers and it is my opinion that if you put turbines over several square miles that are double the height of turbines you currently see, this will be a massive change for the island.”

Mr MacDonald is one of the co-founders of Skye Wind, which aims to share information on all planning applications for Skye with the public.

He said there had been a “salami slicing” of proposals with developments broken up into different applications, leaving residents unclear about the overall impact potentially posed by the developments.

Mr MacDonald, whose family has lived at Skeabost for 150 years, said: “There has been a plethora of new planning applications – a salami slicing, where they have added workers camps, ports, sub stations and so forth.”

Angus MacDonald, the Liberal Democrat MP for Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire, has called for a significant increase in community payment from wind farm developers.

“I am absolutely adamant that, if we are going to have the industrialisation of the Highlands, we need to see a serious financial package put together for the impacted communities.”

He has proposed 5 per cent of all revenue is generated from renewables payable as a community benefit.

Of this, 3 per cent would go to the impacted ward – such as Skye – and 2 per cent would go to a Highland infrastructure fund.

He said Scottish Government guidance from 2014 stated that wind farms should give £5,000 plus inflationary increases per megawatt per installed turbine.

A Social Value Charter published by Highland Council raises the sum to £12,500.

The MP’s proposal would push the sum up to around £15,000, he said.