More turbines on the horizon as wind of change blows

Sixpenny Wood Farm, which will have 10 turbines standing 125m high at Balkholme, near Goole, was allowed on appeal following a refusal of planning permission by East Riding Council.

Construction is expected to take 12 months from the end of this month, with the turbines due to be installed in October and November.

Earlier this month 101 Tory MPs, including local MPs David Davis and Greg Knight, wrote to David Cameron urging him to “dramatically cut the subsidy” for onshore windfarms. Increasing numbers are voicing concerns about the long lasting impact the scores of wind turbines will have on the East Riding.

Howdenshire councillor Paul Robinson said: “In the best case scenario you’d need almost 2000 turbines to replace Drax, but in reality because of their inefficiency you are looking at two times or three times that much, ie around 400 more Sixpennywood farms.”

He said developers had built up a large bank of approved planning applications for turbines in the area “without beginning construction of any – that is until now.”

He said: “What we are now beginning to see is an invasion of turbines by stealth, people will soon realise that they are to be living in a wind turbine landscape as many of the consented turbines are constructed, and there is absolutely nothing they can do about it.”

American-owned AES Wind Generation acquired the scheme which was originally developed by Your Energy in 2010. In a statement the company said they had chosen “very experienced” contractors and expected the farm to be operational in 2013.

Supporters of wind say it has been the world’s fastest growing renewable energy source for some years and that is likely to continue with costs falling, continued energy security threats and the “urgent international need” to tackle CO2 emissions.