01/02/2010

Wind farms

To some they are a spectacular and majestic symbol of the fight against climate change – to others they are an oversized blot on the landscape.

Wind farms and wind turbines have divided the nation, but if the UK is to meet its targets for cutting carbon emissions then there will need to be thousands more of them built in the next couple of decades.

But who decides where they are built – and what can you do if there are plans to construct a wind farm near to where you live?

For the past few months Inside Out has been looking at the village of Yelvertoft in Northamptonshire where power company Your Energy wants to build an eight turbine development – generating enough electricity for 10,000 homes.

"Obviously there are parts of the country which are windier – Scotland and coastal areas - but in general Northamptonshire has got enough wind to make a wind farm economic," says Steve Hunter from Your Energy.

But wind farms can’t be put up just anywhere. Planning restrictions mean whole swathes of countryside are unsuitable.

In the Daventry area, which includes Yelvertoft, special landscape areas, a historic battlefield, rivers, canals and houses mean that 99% of the land is out of bounds.

But many villagers in Yelvertoft are unhappy it’s their community that has been pin-pointed.

"We face the prospect of having eight turbines 80 metres tall with 45 metre blades on top – that’s as tall as the London Eye," says local resident Charlie Watts, who helped formed a campaign group to fight the plans.

It’s up to planning officer Eamon McDowell at Daventry District Council to make a decision based on planning guidelines.

Whatever he decides, someone is going to be unhappy.

The council has received nearly 1,500 letters about the plans, around 200 in support and more than 1,200 against the turbines.

"It can be quite emotive if you are ending up with a development of this magnitude near a village in which you live so the issues can be quite sensitive," he says.

"Our job however is to consider the application on its planning merits."

In the end, the plans are thrown out – but it’s got very little to do with the villagers’ objections. What tipped the balance was the way the turbines would affect the views of a nearby Grade 1 listed house, Stanford Hall.

But that’s not the end of the idea – Your Energy has already submitted an appeal.