Lynemouth villagers are set for wind farm misery

Jan 10 2009 by Dave Black, The Journal

VILLAGERS who have lived for decades in the shadow of giant industrial chimneys are now facing the prospect of looking out on 13 wind turbines which will be even bigger.

The wind farm planned by Scottish Power Renewables will be built on land next to the 650-job Alcan aluminium smelter and power station at Lynemouth, Northumberland – after local objections were overridden by Government ministers.

The 13 turbines will each tower 121m from base to blade tip, and will be 40m taller than the eight chimneys at the Alcan complex which have dominated the skyline since the 1970s.

The site straddles the border between Wansbeck and Castle Morpeth, and the wind farm scheme was left in limbo when Castle Morpeth councillors refused planning permission in 2007 for the seven turbines in their borough.

Now – following an appeal by Scottish Power and a public inquiry held last year – Government ministers have backed the recommendation of planning inspector David Cullingford and approved the scheme.

They say there is an urgent need to foster the generation of more renewable power both nationally and in Northumberland, and the Lynemouth wind farm will help achieve that goal.

They have concluded that, while the turbines will have significant effects on the local landscape, they will always be seen against the looming presence of the Alcan smelter and its eight huge chimneys, which already form a noticeable vertical feature.

The decision yesterday sparked anger among people in the nearby villages of Ellington, Lynemouth and Cresswell, who opposed the wind farm on the grounds that it will hamper efforts to regenerate the former coal mining stronghold.

Cath Davidson, who chairs the local CELL regeneration partnership and Lynemouth Parish Council, said the only consolation was that the number of turbines had been reduced from the original 16.

“We put up with the mess and disturbance of coal mining for generations because of the jobs involved.

“Now we are faced with continuing to be an industrial area, but without the benefit of employment in return. This is the worst of both worlds and we just feel imprisoned by it all.

“We seem to get everything that is ugly here and people are asking themselves, what will they give us next.”

Castle Morpeth councillor Arnold Baker, who spoke out against the wind farm at the public inquiry, said he understood the need for more renewable energy but had been left seething with anger by the decision.

“This is yet another nail in our coffin. While Gordon Brown tours the country trying to show what a wonderful chap he is, he allows his ministers to despoil our area.

“I challenge him to come here and give my constituents a sincere apology, then find a way to deliver a handsome compensation package to the community for the damage this scheme will cause.

“The Alcan smelter is not a pretty sight and these industrial structures will add to that conglomerate and make it stand out even more.

“I had hoped that this area was turning the corner, but once again we are being compelled to accept a scheme which would be unacceptable to others.”