by Jamie Ross
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) will not back down in its bid to stop a wind
turbine being built at the base of a north-east beauty spot.
Fraserburgh Development Trust (FDT) wants to erect a 259ft turbine at the
base of Mormond Hill, near Strichen, which it says will provide renewable
energy for 25 years to come.
But the MoD has objected to the plans, saying that the structure at
Claystiles would interfere with radar in Buchan.
In a response to the initial application, the MoD said the turbine could
throw up false aircraft detections if it were to go ahead.
But Philip Clubley, an agent at Orkney Sustainable Energy Ltd – which has
submitted the proposals on behalf of the FDT – suggested that the turbine
would be out of reach of Buchan radar.
Safeguarding officer David Naylor-Gray disagrees.
And in his latest letter to local authority planners, he said the turbine
could create “unacceptable interference” with radar systems.
He added that the MoD had carried out modelling of the area to test whether
or not the turbine would be caught.
“Our field strength coverage plot for the Claystiles turbine indicates that
the turbine is likely to be detectable by the Buchan radar,” he said.
“In light of this, we maintain our objection.”
It is the latest blow to the turbine project after the RSPB said the
cumulative impact of turbines in the area could begin to impact upon bird
species.
One local man has also raised concerns.
Alistair Brown, who lives in Memsie, said he was already “blighted” by the
noise of turbines in the area.
In a letter of objection, he said: “We can even hear them inside the house
on certain days if the weather conditions are correct – through
double-glazing. Please do not make this worse.”
Last night, a spokesman for Orkney Sustainable Energy declined to comment
on the proposals.
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