Who benefits?
We appreciate T Lewis’s frustration with the wind industry (Letters, 26 October) but would like to clarify his point about “habitations close to wind farm sites receiving compensation for inconvenience and possible noise pollution to the tune of £5,000 per Megawatt installed.”
This implies that people owning the properties closest to the wind farm will receive compensation. Nothing could be further from the truth. These are the people who are affected not only by noise, and visual impact but often flicker both during the day and also at night from aviation lights on the turbines and who usually suffer depreciation in property value as a result. They are the collateral damage.
The financial benefit on offer is paid to “communities” many of which are located far enough from the site that they receive no negative impact from the turbines but are still close enough to be eligible to receive benefit. These communities often support wind farms because they are receiving money without suffering any hardship. What many don’t realise is that community benefit is voluntary and just because it is offered, in order to generate support, doesn’t mean it is paid.
Nobody wants to live next to a wind farm, other than those financially involved in and making a lot of money from the development, but if it is forced upon them then they deserve substantial compensation for the lifetime of the wind farm.
Aileen Jackson, Scotland Against Spin, Uplawmoor, East Renfrewshire
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