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Wind Power News: Scotland
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.
Lethen windpower plan near Grantown is rejected by Ministers
A controversial plan for 17 wind turbies near Lochindorb some 10km north-west of Grantown has been refused by Scottish Ministers. The Scottish Government’s Energy Consents Unit announced the refusal last night. Scotland Against Spin reported: “The Scottish Ministers acknowledge that there are environmental effects from the proposed development resulting in significant visual and landscape impacts as well as impacts on some SLQs (Special landscape qualities) of the (Cairngorms National) Park and on the special qualities of the SLA (Special landscape . . . Complete story »
Grantown wind farm planners ‘Gambled and lost’ say campaigners
Anti–wind farm campaigners are celebrating last night’s announcement that a plan for a 17-turbine wind farm on a historic beauty spot north of Grantown has been rejected. As the Strathy announced earlier, the Scottish Government’s Energy Consents Unit have refused the controversial application lodged by Fred.Olsen Renewables to develop an area near Lochindorb on the Dava Moor. This afternoon Graham Lang of Scotland Against Spin celebrated: “This is an excellent result.” He told the Strathy: “Although the council did lodge . . . Complete story »
World’s first floating wind farm Hywind Scotland faces shutdown for ‘heavy maintenance’
Norwegian energy giant Equinor will temporarily remove all five floating wind turbines from the pioneering Hywind Scotland array later this year after discovering a need for “heavy maintenance” on the Siemens Gamesa machines deployed there, Recharge has learned. The 6MW turbines will be towed back to Wergeland on the west coast of Norway as part of a maintenance programme that is likely to take around four months and will disrupt power output from the project operating 24km off Peterhead since . . . Complete story »
Wind farm legal action launched over wildcat fears
Plans for a new wind farm in Aberdeenshire are set to be challenged in court following concerns over the protection of wildcats. Swedish energy giant Vattenfall received the go-ahead to build a second site at Clashindarroch last year. However, conservation group Wildcat Haven believes it could endanger the local wildcat population. It has now pursued a judicial review over the approval granted by Scottish ministers. Vattenfall’s 14-turbine Clashindarroch II wind farm was approved by Scottish ministers in June last year. . . . Complete story »
Scottish wildcats: Aberdeen wind farm decision goes to judicial review
A decision by Scottish Ministers to grant planning permission for a wind farm on the habitat of an endangered species is to be challenged in a judicial review. Wildcat Haven has raised almost £250,000 through donations in four years, which is how it is funding the legal fight. Its petition to save the Clashindarroch Forest in Aberdeenshire for wildcats has racked up over one million signatures. An application for a wind farm on the site was made by Swedish company . . . Complete story »
Safety fears after two Scots wind turbines broke apart during Storm Gerrit
An energy firm is being asked to investigate the safety of all its wind turbines after two broke apart during a storm. The Sunday Mail told last week how one in Ayrshire spun out of control during Storm Gerrit, causing the 34-metre blades to fly through the air. But around the same time, a turbine in Fife, also owned by Surrey-based Constantine Wind Energy, was destroyed in bad weather. Colin Morrison, from Crail, who spotted the debris on farmland close . . . Complete story »
Faw Side wind farm near Langholm rejected owing to “significant” landscape and visual impact
A wind farm situated at what has been described as a “gateway to Scotland” has been refused. Community Windpower wanted to build 45 turbines along the A7 corridor between Langholm and Teviothead in Dumfries and Galloway and the Borders. The final decision on the Faw Side project lay with the Scottish government following a public inquiry. It has now ruled the scheme should not go ahead due to its “significant” landscape and visual impact. There were also concerns about the . . . Complete story »
Giant turbine blades scattered by storms leads to safety calls from locals
The giant blades of a 34-metre wind turbine broke off and flew through the air during Storm Gerritt. Dramatic footage of the incident also revealed large parts of the fibreglass structure were left embedded in the ground due to the force of winds during Storm Gerrit in Galston, Ayrshire. The damage was caused a few miles from a residential area and has led to calls for a stricter safety crackdown on turbines close to homes and businesses. A resident rang . . . Complete story »
Wind turbine spins out of control and flies apart
Storm Gerrit brought winds of up to 85mph on Wednesday. In such conditions, wind turbines feather their blades and brake the rotor. The brakes seem to have failed in a turbine at Newhouse Farm, Auchencloigh, in Ayrshire, which spun out of control until the blades broke and flew off. The dramatic event was captured on video, as posted on Facebook: The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service had received report of a fire before the turbine broke apart. The wind turbine . . . Complete story »
‘Local’ wind farms owned by firms based abroad
Some of Scotland’s biggest ‘local’ wind farms are owned as far afield as the Cayman Islands and Canada, The Ferret can reveal, prompting claims the Scottish Government is “misleading” the public over its community energy targets. The Scottish Government has a target to bring much more “community or locally owned” renewable energy online by 2030. But its definition of local energy includes projects owned by farms, estates, and businesses, and the majority of projects installed so far are privately owned . . . Complete story »
