By John Davidson | The Inverness Courier
A new onshore wind farm has been proposed in the hills above Fort Augustus.
SSE Renewables has applied to the Scottish Government to construct and
operate a 36-turbine farm.
It would be located 11km south-east of the village in the Monadhliath
mountains with a capacity of at least 150MW, according to the developer.
The Cloiche wind farm would be situated close to the existing Stronelairg
development which was completed in 2018, and opponents say the new
development mimics parts of that scheme that were previously rejected.
However, SSE says it has brought more than £90 million of value to the
Great Glen area through the development and construction of renewable
projects, supporting nearly 130 jobs.
The submission for Cloiche comes after a second round of local consultation
events held in January to allow local residents, community groups and
businesses to see and comment on the proposals.
Craig Cunningham, SSE Renewables development project manager for Cloiche,
said: “We have taken care to design the wind farm to minimise impact on the
environment and have taken local communities’ opinions on board. We hope to
build on the support we have received during the consenting process.
“If taken forward, this project will boost the local economy while helping
the UK meet its net-zero targets.”
If consented, the proposed project has the potential to power 233,000
homes, equivalent to twice the households in a city the size of Aberdeen.
But wild land protagonists say the new scheme is too similar to some of the
turbines which had to be removed from the original Stronelairg plans.
Mike Daniels, head of land management at the John Muir Trust, said:
“Society’s drive to reach net-zero carbon as soon as possible should not be
at the cost of destroying our precious wild landscapes.
“When the highly damaging Stronelairg wind farm was consented, part of the
planning permission was on the basis that these turbines now being applied
for under the name of Cloiche, did not go ahead.
“It is difficult to see how or why the planning authorities would now
reverse that decision.”
Mountaineering Scotland’s conservation and access officer Davie Black
added: “We are currently looking at the proposal and have concerns as it
appears to have some similarities to the original Stronelairg turbine
layout, which had some turbines removed due to their landscape impact.”
A statutory consultation seeking views on the proposal will now be
conducted by the Scottish Government and application documents will be
available to view online at sse.com/cloiche
Mike Seaton, SSE Renewables director of development, said: “We are
committed to enabling the transition to a net-zero world in 2050 and every
onshore wind farm we develop has a role to play in getting us there.”

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