Turbines will not be blown away (From Stroud News and Journal)

Turbines will not be blown away

STROUD-BASED renewable energy company Ecotricity has scrapped its appeal at the eleventh hour to put up four new turbines at Nympsfield.

District planners had turned down the company's application for the wind turbines but Ecotricity launched an appeal to have the decision overturned.

"It had become more trouble than it was worth," Dale Vince, managing director of Ecotricity, said this week.

"We dropped it because the appeal process had become disproportionate to what we were trying to achieve.

"You're looking a six figure sum if we'd have gone through with the appeal and I imagine it would have cost the council something similar.

"It would have been like using a sledgehammer to crack a walnut. And to be honest, we can spend our time and money on better projects."

Ron Easton, a member of the Cotswold Protection Group set up in Nympsfield to oppose wind turbines, said the group was very pleased that the appeal had been withdrawn.

"Originally the decision was to be made based on written representations, which is the cheap way of doing things.

"But we'd have had no input into it so we insisted on a public inquiry. "We were quite surprised when we found out that was to go ahead.

"It's very unusual for a small group like ours to be listened to."

David Corker, the district council's senior appeals officer, said it was likely SDC would now make an application to recover its costs from Ecotricity.

"Quite how much that will be I have no idea at the moment," said Mr Corker. "But I expect we're talking about a four figure sum."

Ecotricity has not given up on the Nympsfield site. "We'll be back with another application shortly," said Mr Vince.

"Government thinking has to make its way to Stroud eventually, even if the planners have got their heads buried in the sand on this issue.

"We're hoping to find another way to make planners realise they've got a responsibility here and they're out of touch with what the people want."

"At the moment it seems you can build on a flood plain in Stroud but you can't do something to help prevent climate change.

"The council uses green electricity from our windmill but they don't want more built round here."

Mr Vince finished with a parting shot which will send shivers down spines or sighs of relief depending which side of the fence people sit on the great turbine debate.

"We'll be back," he said. "And it won't take us very long either."