By Craig Smith
People power appears to have put a stop to plans for three wind turbines in
north-east Fife.
Temporis Wind had hoped to install the revolutionary devices on Drumcarrow
Hill near Strathkinness, with the turbines – made by American company Ogin
International – using a much smaller rotor contained within a cowling system.
The design failed to sway local residents who submitted more than 60
objections.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) also lodged its formal opposition, raising
“potential flight safety implications” for the air traffic control at
Leuchars, 7.75km from the proposed site.
Fife Council has confirmed the application has been withdrawn.
Graham Lang, from pressure group Scotland Against Spin, said he was pleased
to see the proposals shelved after what the objections from local residents.
“The consultant Temporis’s ping-pong email correspondence with Fife Council
trying to keep the application alive in the face of a clear-cut objection
from the MoD shows a disconnect with reality,” he said.
“The windfarm started its journey at the planning department in July 2014,
with a full application lodged in early November 2015.
“A few weeks later the MoD objection landed on the planner’s desk.
“It seems the agent tried to contact the MoD to seek a way round their
objection but received no response despite their claim to have
radar-friendly turbines.”
He continued: “Irrespective of the MoD objection, I am quite confident that
the key issues of landscape and visual amenity would have led the planner
towards a recommendation for refusal on these grounds alone.”
Representatives of Ogin and Temporis, the manufacturer and developer of
these new turbines, had argued that the main attraction of jet engine
turbines is that their lower turbines can produce three times the amount of
energy as conventional turbines and its shrouded design and short,
non-metallic blades inherently reduce radar cross-section and could
therefore overcome radar objections.
Gordon Ball, chairman of Cameron Community Council, said: “The community
was delighted to be informed by Fife Council of the withdrawal of the
application as scores of people lodged objection.
“At the same time, given the degree of community engagement with the
applicant and his agent, it is disappointing not to have received this news
first-hand from the applicant himself, who after all is a neighbour to many
in our community.”
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