Issued 27 November 2010

PROPOSED WINDFARM AT DAVIDSTOW WOODS, ADVENT

After rejection of their planning application last July, Community Windpower Ltd (CWL) from Cheshire, the company seeking planning permission for a huge windfarm at Davidstow, held public displays of their new proposals on the 23rd and 24th November at Tremail and Camelford

The number of turbines has been reduced from 20 to 16 but the power output of each turbine has been increased from 2.5MW to 3MW by increasing the diameter of the swept area from 95m to 101m, without adding to the overall height (126.5m). A small, 100kW, turbine has been added to give a 48.1MW total capacity. The profit for one year (£30,000) from this small turbine would be given to Camelford

The boundary of the site has been altered to provide quarry sites to supply the foundations of the turbines, plus the road building for the site. No definite information was given regarding which standards would be followed for visualisations (these had been so misleading in the previous application) and whether the guidelines for noise would be adhered to. Realistic visualisations are essential to ensure that members of the public have a clear picture of the impact this industrialisation will have on Bodmin Moor, Roughtor, Brown Willy etc.

When asked how they felt about 16,000 starlings being killed per year, as predicted in the developer's environmental impact assessment, their answer was "What's 16,000 out of millions? The company has agreed that if bird deaths exceed 250 per day the turbines will be switched off"

This raises the question - "What if 240 birds per day are killed ? Will that be OK?"

Starlings are on the red list of birds of conservation concern

The Be Green shop in Camelford is funded by 'Community' Windpower Ltd and is part of their standard practice across the UK, when seeking planning approval for their huge developments which yield £millions in profits. This developer calls his shops Be Green - perhaps this should be changed!

Stop Turbines in North Cornwall (STINC) and their supporters attended these consultations and found that the majority of people who called in were opposed to the development

STINC objects to to this new application on the grounds that the unique landscape of Roughtor and Brown Willy would be desecrated by an industrial intrusion that would also endanger the immense flocks of starlings that roost in the area, as well as the golden plover and lapwing that feed in the fields where the turbines would be installed

The recent Time-team excavations on the slopes of Roughtor have highlighted the importance of the archaeological remains in the area that would be dominated by this development

Cornwall Council have just advised that STINC will be Consultees in respect of this and any subsequent planning application for wind turbines at this site

This application, while tweaking the details of the first application, continues to be a massive development that would despoil the unique landscape of this part of Cornwall, destroy the habitat and endanger the important species that have made it their home. It is too close to many residences and could put at risk the health and welfare of those who live nearby. Like the first it too should be rejected