Two years ago, the Scottish Government refused planning permission for a 181-turbine windfarm stretching from Port of Ness in the north of Lewis through Bragar south to Stornoway. The developers, AMEC, have now announced they are considering a smaller development of some 30 turbines, stretching from the Pentland Road in the north to Achmore and Loch Leurbost in the south and points east of this line across the Arnish Moor to the coast. Hebrides News, which is the source of this story, points out the environmental impact this development is likely to have - and that the same arguments for rejection will apply that were used in 2008 against AMEC's larger developments further north.
AMEC have also not booked 'space' on the Gravir to Dundonnell interconnector, as they were originally going to put in a cable linking the former development to Hunterston, 250 miles away in Ayrshire.
I gather that the Stornoway Trust would be quite happy to have this development in its territory - and I dig up the phrases I used in the years 2005-2008 when voicing my opposition to the big windfarm on this blog. Blinded by money, with hopefully good intentions of furthering the island's economy in mind - but likely to be taken to the cleaners by AMEC.
I wonder when people are going to learn from their mistakes. Are we going to be in for another number of years of wasted money on developments that are going to be turned down at any rate? It was clear that the 181-turbine plan was going to be turned down from the moment the planning application was lodged - as the Comhairle should have known. I'm sure they are going to rubberstamp this fantastic development as they have done with the Eishken windfarm - and they are once more going to come out with egg on their faces at the end of the process.
Someone has posted a letter on Hebrides News querying why wind energy generated on the islands is not used on the islands instead of being reliant on a massivley expensive and intrusive internconnector for these projects to go ahead. I wondered if this person is being rather naive but I think some of us might be less anti-turbine if we thought it would benefit the local economy and provide some compensation for having to put up with the wretched things. At the moment no one is going to convince me that they are anything other than a licence to print money for large organisations with a few beans thrown to Fred Blogs who has to look at them all day. And...AL some of the names asscociated with Point & Sandwick grazings tend to crop up whenever there's a wind farm in the offering particularly in Pairc and Eishken.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately that if and when turbines cover the whole of the UK, they will be deemed as old hat and some celebrity will announce that they don't actually work As for the Comhairle....they have egg over their faces with everything they make a decision on and still they remain in situ sticking two fingers up to the rest of us.
I think the weather is making me extra grumpy!