Anti-wind farm campaigners won the latest battle against a huge development
near Dalmellington.
And now they have urged Scottish Ministers to give the 50-turbine plan for
South Kyle a final boot into touch.
At a special Planning Meeting on Friday, councillors agreed to the
recommendations from council officers to OBJECT to the controversial
proposals from Vattenfall.
After a site visit to the planned location, just east of Dalmellington,
Cllr David Shaw said: “We were up at Loch Doon and you can see the
fantastic scenery when you are up there.
“For that reason I would certainly object to this.”
The decision isn’t an end to the matter though and, as the development is
of a scale of 50 turbines or more, the Scottish Ministers will make the
final decision later this year.
They will look at it objectively and then determine what will happen.
While Dalmellington Community Council objected to the plans – with EAC
receiving over 1000 letters of protest – nearby Patna Community Council say
the wind farm will be a good thing for the area and they supported it.
Twenty of the proposed turbines fall within Dumfries and Galloway – and the
council there also backed the plan.
It also emerged before the meeting that air traffic controllers had lifted
their objection to it after originally being concerned that 12 of the
turbines would have an adverse impact on radar and jeopardise air traffic
control.
But it remains to be seen how the Scottish Government will see things,
having recently rejected EAC’s objection to a massive quarry near Muirkirk.
Speaking after the meeting, Mark Gibson from Dalmellington’s Dark Sky
Observatory said: “It is really positive that this decision has been taken
but the Scottish Government have gone against these recommendations before.
“There seems to be a growing realisation that wind farms can do great harm
to tourism and the natural world. I think 95 per cent of the Dalmellington
population will be against it.”
Objectors will take confidence from a decision by Ministers in 2008 to kick
out Vattenfall’s 100-turbine plans at Kyle. While the energy firm has
reduced the size of the site for this new proposal, the turbines themselves
are actually bigger.
Alison Daugherty, Vattenfall’s Senior Project Manager, said:“We would like
to thank the local community and businesses for their continued support
over a number of years.
“It is estimated that throughout the two-year construction period and 25
years operations, South Kyle Wind Farm could help to create or retain more
than 150 local jobs. The Planning Committee’s decision will now delay
investment to the area. We remain committed to maximising the local
economic benefit that South Kyle Wind Farm could bring to South West Scotland.”
The application has been submitted under section 36 of the Electricity Act
1989 so although East Ayrshire Council is not the determining authority, it
is an important consultee along with Dumfries and Galloway Council. The
Scottish Government will have the final say on the scheme.
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