Other News…..

EURO-MPs were yesterday accused of trying to strangle shale gas exploration with red tape. The European Parliament’s environment committee ruled that all work aiming to identify underground reserves must only be approved following “environmental impact assessments”. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/politics/5009162/Anger-at-Brussels-attacking-fracking-as-Brits-back-shale-gas-exploration-in-Sun-poll.html

FRANCE: The Advocate General of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has concluded that the French tariff system for wind power falls within the concept of state aid. The ruling means the government should have notified the European Commission (EC) when it issued the decree defining the tariff in 2008. Read more

Researchers in Germany who are working on ways of storing renewable energy say their plans are being hampered by feed-in tariffs. The subsidies have encouraged thousands of householders to become energy producers by investing in solar and wind power. But one leading scientist told the BBC that these same tariffs Read more

DALMELLINGTON Community Council have urged locals to rally round and hammer a final nail in the coffin of a controversial wind farm. Back in January, council chiefs received rapturous applause when they rejected the proposal by Infinis to build eight massive wind turbines close to the Chalmerston opencast site. They Read more

The Scottish Government is issuing guidance on dismantling wind farms. Research carried out for Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) looked at forming a restoration and decommissioning template for wind farm owners. The study proposes a planned phasing out of a site to leave as little trace as possible. The consultants say Read more

It was a picture that warmed the hearts of opponents of wind farms the world over. In December 2011, a wind turbine at the coastal town of Ardrossan in the UK spectacularly exploded during a storm. Pictures of the flaming debris shower flashed across global media, triggering claims that turbines Read more

SCOTTISH schools are hosting 68 wind turbines across more than two-thirds of councils, erected with £1.5 million of taxpayers’ money. Local authorities have only built turbines at schools during the last few years, but a fifth have already been decommissioned. The Scottish Government has backed the expansion of wind farms Read more

I NOTE with interest your article “UK would ‘have Scotland over a barrel on renewables’” (The Herald, July 8). Contrary to “Coalition sources” quoted in The Herald, Scotland’s electricity generation capacity is a huge asset both for Scotland and for our neighbours, and of course it is developers, financiers and Read more