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Wind Power News: England
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch in its noncommercial educational effort to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch. They are the products of and owned by the organizations or individuals noted and are shared here according to “fair use” and “fair dealing” provisions of copyright law.
‘Absolute sacrilege!’ Spalding, Kirton and Bennington farmers fear windfarm could cause ‘massive catastrophic disturbance’ to ‘the most productive land in the country’
Farmers have warned of the ‘massive catastrophic disturbance’ a proposed windfarm could do to their businesses. Landowners fear the planned Outer Dowsing Offshore Wind project could cause irreversible damage to ‘the most productive land in the country’. “I think it’s an absolute sacrilege to be using Grade-I land for these purposes,” Jenny Pennington, of Spalding Marsh’s H. Pennington & Sons, told an open floor hearing on Thursday (October 10). The Outer Dowsing Offshore Wind project wants to build a 1.5 . . . Complete story »
Parish council labels plans for 77 metre wind turbine ‘unacceptable’
Plans to replace an existing wind turbine in Furness with one 30 metres taller have been branded ‘unacceptable’ by a parish council. Solar Ventus Ltd has applied to Westmorland and Furness Council to replace the existing wind turbine on land off Askam Road near Dalton with a wind turbine which measures 77 metres from the ground to the tip of the blade. The existing wind turbine on the site was granted planning permission in 2013 and measures 44 metres in . . . Complete story »
Residents attended Ossian wind farm project open day in Moulton Seas End to express concerns and find out more information about two new substations at Weston Marsh near Spalding and Alford near Skegness
Residents have shared their concerns with developers about the impact a wind farm project will have on their community. Ossian is developing a floating offshore wind farm off Scotland’s east coast to generate renewable energy which could be delivered to the National Grid at two new substations in Weston Marsh, near Spalding, and Alford near Skegness. An information session held in Moulton Seas End Village Hall by Ossian allowed residents to find out more about the project and how it . . . Complete story »
Wind turbine fire
Fire control received 999 calls reporting a wind turbine on fire, near Chulmleigh, Devon. Two fire engines were sent and on arrival crews confirmed this turbine was well alight from the engine, at the top of the turbine, approx 30 metres high. Crews set up a cordon and waited for the owner to turn up. The owner was able to isolate the turbine, which was severely damaged by fire. The cause of the fire was accidental. Complete story »
Proposed wind farms ‘devastating’ for fishers
Proposals to expand planned wind farm sites off the Devon and Cornwall coast could devastate the fishing industry, fishermen have warned. It comes after the Crown Estate, which owns the sea bed, published its latest map of potential development zones. It includes thousands of square miles off Land’s End and the Isles of Scilly, currently prime fishing grounds, and an expanded zone off north Devon. The Crown Estate said it would be seeking views “from across industry and marine stakeholders” . . . Complete story »
GE Vernova sees another blade failure at UK offshore wind farm
A turbine blade failed at an offshore wind farm near England’s northeast coast, the latest in a string of similar accidents that has damaged public acceptance of the struggling industry. The failure occurred Thursday morning on an installed GE Vernova Inc. turbine at the Dogger Bank wind farm, according to a notice on the project website that gave no further details of the damage. No one was injured in the incident, and the cause is under investigation. A GE Vernova . . . Complete story »
Huge backlash to plans to install thousands of pylons in unspoilt rural areas for “Net Zero”
The energy secretary, Ed Miliband, has been warned he faces battlegrounds across the country over plans to install thousands of pylons in unspoilt rural areas to deliver a “clean power” revolution. Council leaders and communities oppose proposals for a vast new network of pylons across large parts of several counties, including Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. There are calls for community compensation of “hundreds of millions of pounds” if the schemes are pushed through. The proposals are part of . . . Complete story »
Labour paves way for new Norfolk onshore wind farms
Rachel Reeves, the incoming chancellor, introduced new measures to give the sites an easier ride through the planning system, as part of a range of reforms intended to boost economic growth. The change could have a significant impact in the region, which experts say contains huge areas which are suitable for such sites. At least half a dozen renewables companies have started to identify sites for full-scale windfarms across the country. Green campaigners and the energy sector have welcomed the . . . Complete story »
Wind turbine workers at Hull’s Siemens Gamesa blade plant balloted for strike action over pay
Around 300 Siemens Gamesa wind turbine workers in Hull are being balloted for strike action over pay, the Unite union said today (Friday, July 12). The workers, who construct 108m-long wind turbine blades by hand, are angry at a 4.5 per cent pay offer plus an opaque incentive scheme, according to Unite. Since 2018, wages at the factory on the banks of the Humber estuary have dropped by 11.9 per cent in real terms, it said. Unite general secretary Sharon . . . Complete story »
England’s largest onshore wind farm in Yorkshire ‘would be catastrophic for nature’
Campaigners have warned that building England’s largest onshore wind farm on protected peatland would be “catastrophic for carbon storage, wildlife and flood risk”. Saudi-backed developer World Wide Renewable Energy Global Ltd wants to construct the farm on more than 2,300 hectares at Walshaw Moor, between Hebden Bridge and Haworth. Consisting of up to 65 wind turbines, it would be capable of generating up to 302MW of power. The developer said last September that it would establish a £75m community benefit . . . Complete story »
