Another Screening Opinion – Ridgecombe Farm, Lifton

Posted on February 4, 2014 by mabrake

On top of the Tredown request for a Screening Opinion is another, this time for Ridgecombe Farm, Lifton and again by Aardvark/Murex.

Full details can be found on the WDBC Planning site under 00178/2014 but in essence it is for a 77m high turbine located above the Lifton to Chillaton road some 1/2 mile on the right after leaving the bridge at Tinhay and proceeding in the direction of Chillaton.

Ridgecombe Turbine 1

We have no doubt that the Lifton Parish Council will call a meeting on this subject but in the meantime you can object to the proposal by emailing environment@aardvarkem.co.uk referring to Ridgecombe Farm, Lifton, Devon, and quoting Screening Opinion WDBC 00178/2014.

 

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Tredown 77m Wind Turbine – Public Meeting.

Posted on February 4, 2014 by mabrake

Tredown 250 foot (77m) Wind Turbine

Many of you will have received a leaflet from a company called Murex saying they are proposing to seek permission to erect a 77m high Wind Turbine at a site just about 700m from Milton Abbot.

This Turbine would have a devastating effect on Milton Abbot and other surrounding villages.

  • It will devalue your property (confirmed by an estate agent at our last meeting – no one wants to live next to a turbine)
  • It will affect our tourist industry (B&B’s etc) Visitors come because of the outstanding beauty of this area.
  • The many, many tonnes of concrete in the base for the turbine could have an impact on the water supplies
  • There is already another application for a Turbine at Beckwell Farm, close to this Turbine – do we want Ramsdown above us to become a Wind Farm?
  • More of them will follow!
  • It’s the highest area between Dartmoor, Bodmin Moor and the Tamar Valley – it will be seen for miles and will be a terrible blot on the landscape.

What is all this for? Where is the benefit?

Murex Claim:

  • It will help close the ‘energy gap’ and reduce CO2 emissions – it will have no significant effect. Because Wind Turbines are unreliable they have to be backed up by power stations
  • They are going to be making a contribution to the community – this will be very a small part of the profits being made by the developer and the landowner. Which we are subsidising!!

A PUBLIC MEETING will be held to discuss this proposal at Milton Abbot Public Hall on MONDAY 17th February at 7pm

Respond to MUREX saying you strongly object to their proposal

(email address; environment@aardvarkem.co.uk)

If you don’t respond they will say to WDBC that there are few objections.

Posted in General Updates | 2 Comments

Lifton Farm Shop and the Wind Turbine Application

Posted on February 3, 2014 by mabrake

The following letter from our Chairman (Dr G F Vanstone) has been forwarded to both the Tavistock Times and Western Morning News.

Lifton Farm Shop and the Wind Turbine Application

We note with utter dismay that the Planning Inspector has approved the application for a 77m (250 feet) high Wind Turbine near to Lifton Farm shop and the A30. This makes now three of these inefficient monstrosities within a very short distance (Roadford and Wortham farm being the others). Together with five further ones approved which will be near to Launceston.

This Wind Turbine application has been made by Lifton Farm Shop who already have approval for two smaller turbines and solar arrays with an output of 500KW. The shop does not need this further turbine to support its business and if it proceeds it will only be on the basis of exploiting subsidies (paid for by the rest of us) to generate yet more income. The WDBC Planning Committee, the majority of local residents, CPRE and English Heritage all oppose this application but the Planning Inspectorate have chosen, yet again, to ignore these views as they have done so on many applications in Torridge and West Devon. This is despite the promises from government ministers to respect local opinion. Either the ministers are being untruthful or the inspectors are ignoring them.

It is not too late to bring home to the applicants for this Turbine the strength of local opinion against it. We would suggest that all people who feel this way should stop using this shop and write to the owners about their strong objections to this development proceeding.

We urge everyone who feels strongly about the industrialisation of our countryside to act now!

Dr G F Vanstone FREng

 

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Davidstowe Wind Farm plans abandoned.

Posted on January 30, 2014 by mabrake

PRESS RELEASE

Some Good News at Last!

29th January 2014

RENEWABLE ENERGY GENERATOR SCRAPS 2 WIND FARMS IN ENGLAND

Well established renewable energy company, Community Windpower Ltd (CWL) which has 300MW of operating and consented onshore wind power in the UK, has finally decided to abandon two key onshore wind farm projects in England following the Government’s introduction of the Energy Market Reform.

Davidstow Wind Farm, located on a World War II airfield in North Cornwall and Claughton Moor Wind Farm, located beside an operating wind farm near Lancaster in Lancashire, together would have provided over 70MW for the local electricity network and contributed in excess of £100m into the regional economies. Over 120 construction jobs would have been created with long term employment and economic benefits to local communities.

Rod Wood, Managing Director of Community Windpower Ltd said: “It is really disappointing to close our office in Camelford, make staff redundant, shut down our renewable energy developments in England and write off millions of pounds of investment. The Government has been constantly shifting its position on UK renewables and it’s now planning to rush through an auction process which is likely to crash the price at best, or in the worst case, stop generators selling green energy altogether. The previous auction system under NFFO simply didn’t work”.

“UK and overseas investors have hundreds of millions invested in the development of green energy in the UK; all invested on the basis of a fixed strike price until 2020 and any U‐turn will completely undermine this investment. Meanwhile the Government continues to seek green energy from abroad and with the current lack of clarity beyond 2020, jobs and investment will inevitably be lost overseas at the expense of UK plc”.

“This is no way of inviting investors to commit £110 billion into the UK, to keep the lights on and support a burgeoning renewables industry”.

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New Screening Opinion – Tredown Farm – 77m Wind Turbine

Posted on January 29, 2014 by mabrake

Tredown Farm has requested a Screening Option for a 77m Wind Turbine on the southern end of Ramsdown overlooking Milton Abbot. (This site is in the next field to one of the two originally proposed by Tredown Farm in August 2011 and which resulted in a very robust rejection at a public Meeting in Milton Abbot on the 15th September 2011).

See 00162/2014 on the WDBC site for full details

As this single wind turbine exceeds the maximum height of 15m laid down in Statutory Instrument No.2932 of the Town and Country Planning Act a Public Consultation will be needed to be carried out before  the application can be considered.

Posted in General Updates | 4 Comments