Since the rejection of the Wellow wind farm application by the Isle of Wight Council in October 2006 ThWART has been taking an active role in supporting and promoting renewable energy projects on the Island.

ThWART saw the Eco Island conference held by the Isle of Wight Council in March 2008 as a chance to unite the Island behind a properly substantiated and worked out energy plan built on self-sufficiency and securlty of supply, but regrets that the oppotrtunity was not taken.

The draft Island Plan just published by the Isle of Wight Council as a consultative document contains no attempt to objectively identify and quantify the renewable energy options available to the Island, and the only ‘target’ for electricity generation from renewables quoted is unsubstantiated and described as “only illustrative of what is possible”.

The Plan states that renewable energy targets can only be met by building large scale wind turbines. ThWART believes this view to be unfounded, as it is not based on any proper analysis of renewable energy resources available on the Island. Wind power fails to offer a secure energy supply, as it only operates effectively within a narrow range of wind conditions and is only made commercially viable thanks to publicly funded subsidies. Other forms of renewable energy should be developed because they can provide reliable energy and do far less harm to the landscape, which is so vital for the Island’s tourist industry.

ThWART will be making a detailed response to the draft Island Plan and is encouraging its members to do so also via the Consultation Document or at one of the public consultations before the ? September deadline.

ThWART is dismayed to see from a map published in the Island Plan (and reproduced in the County Press issue of 15 August) that 2 of 11 selected potential sites for large scale wind turbines are at Wellow and Cheverton Down. The application for a wind farm at Wellow was rejected unanimously by the Council’s development control committee in October 2006, and ThWART opposed a planning permission granted at Cheverton Down in 2002, but the turbines were never built.

A developer, Cornish Light and Power, is about to apply for planning permission to erect 3 giant turbines on this site, almost 6 times larger than those for which planning approval was originally given. These new generation turbines would, if allowed, be 125 metres in height compared to the 105 metre machines intended for Wellow. More importantly, these taller turbines would stand on ground 180 metres above sea level compared to those at Wellow which would have stood on land only 60 metres above sea level. Thus reaching 1000ft above sea level in total, they would be 100ft higher than the Rowridge TV mast and have a far greater visual impact even than those planned for Wellow. The site also lies within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Before a planning application of this kind is submitted it is a requirement that the developer requests a Scoping Opinion to ensure that all valid issues are dealt with in the Environmental Impact Assessment that forms an essential part of the application. As one of the consultees ThWART has submitted a lengthy and detailed response drawing attention to a considerable number of points which do not appear to have been adequately considered. CLP Scoping Request | ThWART's Response

ThWART is contacting its 3000+ membership alerting them to the fact that the new planning proposal for Cheverton Down is expected to be submitted shortly and when received will require a swift response.

Newsflash - September 2008