Faulty wind turbines could stay at Kirkheaton

Sep 26 2009 by Vicky Robson, The Journal

FAULTY wind turbines could remain at a Northumberland beauty spot for another year if a new planning application is approved.

The three giant structures at Kirkheaton, north of Hexham, were put up almost 10 years ago by EDF Energy.

But technical issues meant that two of the turbines had to have their blades removed, and only one of the three has been operating since last autumn.

The original planning approval for the site stated that any turbine not working for more than six months should be removed and that part of the site should be restored.

EDF Energy has submitted a planning application to Northumberland County Council to vary planning conditions, but people living close to the site have branded the wind farm “a waste of time and money”. They say the turbines should be dismantled as it is the second time they have stopped working in the past few years.

The council is considering the application to allow EDF Energy to retain the turbines for a further 12 months to give the company time to replace and repair the broken blades.

Charles Harrison, who lives close to the site, said: “There have been two big turbine blades just left lying on the ground there for ages.

“I think they are just a complete waste of time and money and I am wholeheartedly against them for producing electricity.

“It’s got to be constant. They feed into the National Grid and we will end up having widespread power cuts because of them. Half of the time these things aren’t even working. This isn’t the first time they have been broken either. About four years ago they had gearbox problems there so they were off for about a year then too.

“They are not a good source of energy because they are not reliable at all. It’s a total waste of money keeping them there. There is just no point in fixing them.”