Faulty Northumberland wind turbines could be taken down

Jun 23 2009 by Ben Guy, The Journal

Public inquiry draws to a close

NORTHUMBERLAND’S progress in meeting renewable targets means there is no need to approve three "inappropriate" wind farm proposals, the closing session of a public inquiry heard yesterday.

Peter Worlock, chairman of Save our Unspoilt Landscape (SOUL), made the claim as the inquiry into three proposals for a combined 20 turbines near Berwick came to an end.

Both supporters and opponents of wind power at the hearing agreed that Northumberland has little chance of meeting its 2010 target for renewable energy generation.

But Mr Worlock felt the number of applications approved in the county recently meant it will have a better chance of meeting its 2020 target.

He told the hearing that, in the last 18 months, wind farms with a combined capacity of 159 megawatts have been approved in the last 18 months, five times the county’s installed capacity to date.

He reminded planning inspector Ruth McKenzie that a decision is awaited on another three proposals in Tynedale, with a combined 140 megawatts.

Mr Worlock said the wind industry has "a very strong pipeline" in Northumberland.

This, he argued, should mean there is no need to approve the three Berwick schemes just to meet targets. Speaking at Berwick’s Maltings theatre, he said: "There is no imperative to grant permission on inappropriate sites."

Mr Worlock’s group is opposing Catamount Energy’s bid for six turbines at Barmoor.

The two other schemes being heard at the inquiry are Your Energy’s proposal for seven engines at Moorsyde and npower renewable’s scheme for seven at Toft Hill.

Elizabeth Dunn, for Your Energy, hit back at Mr Worlock’s claims, urging Mrs McKenzie to take a similar view to the inspector who approved a scheme at nearby Wandylaw. That inspector said there was no prospect of Northumberland meeting its 2010 target and that this increased the need for Wandylaw. Mrs Dunn said: "Northumberland is still a long way from meeting its targets and they are not caps or ceilings." Paul Tucker, for Northumberland County Council, told the session it would be better if the authority carried out an appraisal of the county and identified the best sites for wind farms.

"Whatever those best sites are, they are not at Toft Hill, at Moorsyde or at Barmoor."

Mrs McKenzie told the inquiry that she would prepare a report on each of the three schemes to the secretary of state for communities and local government by the end of September or beginning of October.

The secretary of state will then consider the reports before making the final decision, probably in the new year.

The inquiry came about after the three companies were refused planning permission by the now-defunct Berwick Borough Council last March, and appealed.