Public trust in the planning process around major infrastructure
developments such as wind farms is at an all-time low according to a letter
published in The Herald today.
There is angst and suspicion, says the letter, stemming from the sacrifice
of areas of wild land and natural heritage to commercial priorities, and if
we are to rebuild public confidence, the current planning system must be
reviewed.
Those who have campaigned against wind farms will find it easy to agree
with those sentiments, but what adds weight to the letter is the breadth of
interests it represents. The signatories include Sir Kenneth Calman,
chairman of the National Trust for Scotland and Stuart Housden, the chief
executive of RSPB Scotland. There are also representatives of ramblers and
climbers and other campaign groups.
These pressure groups and campaigners have combined before to express
concern about the planning process in Scotland, most notably around wind
farms, but today’s letter suggests a new way forward with the formation of
an independent body to adjudicate over planning applications where there
could be significant impact on important landscape or local communities.
The letter writers believe it is the only way to demonstrate transparency
and fairness in the planning process.
The idea is based on the reasonable premise that there is widespread public
concern about wind farms and the balance to be struck between the natural
environment and development. Some of the public concern about development
might be dismissed as nimbyism, but the spread of wind farms does represent
a profound change in the Scottish landscape. Scottish Natural Heritage, for
example, has recorded how Scotland has become increasingly affected by
built development. According to their records, in 2002, 41% of Scotland was
unaffected by visual intrusion of built development; by 2009 it had reduced
to 28%.
Some of this development is justifiable. The Scottish Government needs to
do more to reduce our reliance on onshore wind farms and increase the use
of offshore sites and tidal power, but onshore wind farms are still an
important part of the Government’s strategy to achieve the goal of
generating all electricity from renewables by 2020.
The challenge for the government is to pursue this policy while also
protecting the beautiful and cherished areas of Scottish wilderness and to
do so, it must develop a planning system that can openly and fairly
adjudicate between these two competing interests.
There have already been welcome changes – last year’s new planning
framework for instance banned wind farm developments in the 19% of Scotland
which is either classed as a national park or a national scenic area. But
each development needs to be considered on a case by case basis as part of
an independent process that gives a fair and a thorough hearing to all sides.
Today’s letter suggests a new independent body would help achieve this, but
the strongest argument for such a body is that it would remove or reduce
the need for individuals, communities and charities to hire expensive
lawyers to fight applications through the courts. The UK Government is a
signatory to the Aarhus Convention, which includes a demand that access to
justice in environmental cases should not be restricted due to prohibitive
expense.
A new independent body could help us do more to meet our commitments under
the Aarhus Convention and for that reason alone, it deserves consideration.
Scotland does need new wind farms, but the Scottish Government must also
ensure a proper balance between campaigners who believe they are protecting
wild Scotland and developers with deep pockets.
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