Pontefract Windfarm Action Group

Banks Development wins wind mast appeal

Windmast

The Application for a Wind Mast on land adjacent to Westfield Lane,Darrington was finally approved by an inspector appointed by the Secretary of State on the 27 December 2007. This was just over 10 months since the Application was first submitted to the Wakefield Metropolitan District Council Planning Department.

The decision, although a disappointment to members of The Pontefract Wind Farm Action Group, was inevitable, considering the high profile pressure being exerted by national government to establish some visible proof of their commitment to Renewable Energy.

Proposed wind farm too close to people’s homes

Nova CN Power Renewables

Plans to build a wind farm have taken a huge step forward after consents for a wind tester mast have been granted by the Planning Inspectorate despite Wakefield Council’s rejection of the proposal. If approved the proposed wind farm will be built on a site close to homes in South Pontefract. Each of the six turbines would be up to 125 metres in height which would make them taller than Big Ben.

Some homes will be within 500 metres of the turbines which will make the Westfield Lane development closer to residential property than any other large turbine installation in England. Further north in Scotland there is a 2km set-back distance and in Wales 1.5km. In France 1.5km setback is recommended to protect the public whilst other areas of the world including Denmark, Spain, the USA and Australia there are concerns about the location of wind farms and in particular the effects they may have on people’s health.

Living with windpower

Menwith Hill

Concerns have been expressed in the Yorkshire Post that with the number of speculative wind farm applications going through the planning process our county is set to lose vast swathes of open countryside to the cause of renewable energy.Westfield Lane wind farm is one such proposal ‘held up in planning’, and quite rightly so as there are many serious issues to consider, least of all it is a totally unsuitable site.

Some thirty miles away however, work recently started on the Knabs Ridge wind farm. The site, six miles east of Harrogate, is a balk of land lying between the A59 Skipton Road and Pennypot Lane, with planning permission for eight wind turbines.To date, six of the concrete bases have been laid and the base sections of the tubular towers are on site.