THE company behind a plan for an unpopular wind turbine, which was also heavily criticised for the poorly drafted "copy and paste" application, has lodged an appeal with the Planning Inspectorate against Mid Devon District Council's refusal of planning permission.

The appeal has been lodged by Murex Energy Ltd, of Somerset, through their agent Aardvark.

The company proposes to build a 71 metre-high wind turbine at Hawkridge Farm, Coldridge.

It would be a 275kw wind turbine (with maximum blade tip height of 71m, hub height of 55m) and the plan is also for the formation of a new vehicular access track and associated infrastructure at the site.

The plan received many objections and at a public meeting organised by Coldridge Parish Council to gauge depth of feeling, all but two of a packed hall of people voted against the plan.

"Copy and paste" details in the application from other similar applications by the company in other areas were severely criticised at the meeting.

Mid Devon District Council's planning department confirmed that the planning officer did encourage the applicant and his agent, to consider if there were any other ways of achieving the renewable energy benefits at the site, but in a manner that would be less harmful.

Reasons cited against the plan by Mid Devon District Council included visual impact, location, scale and appearance, proximity to Listed buildings and effect on nearby properties.

'UNANIMOUSLY AGAINST'

Coldridge Parish Council is unanimously against the plan and all local parish councils have objected or expressed serious concerns.

The Parish Council made the decisions following the public meeting.

The meeting previously heard from councillors who had studied the details submitted with the plan. This included the topography, drawings of the proposed turbine, landscape and visual report, construction and traffic management plan, wind turbine noise assessment, plans/drawings detailing location, construction and potential flicker, environment consideration statement and habitat survey of land at Hawkridge Farm.

Evident from the studies of the reports by councillors, as well as many of the members of the public, the opinion was that some were what can best be described as the poor quality of the planning submission.

All the documents were littered with errors, some with extracts which were obviously "copy and paste" from other submissions in other areas!

One of the members of the public said that the plan should have been thrown out because it was sub-standard!

Another claimed it was "full of gross inaccuracies".

The timings of the habitat survey, when most wildlife was dormant or tucked up for winter, caused much laughter in the room.

Many people at the meeting considered the proximity of the proposed turbine to the Eggesford Airfield in the neighbouring parish to have not been given sufficient consideration, some fearing an aircraft could hit the turbine after take-off or coming in to land.

The plan was for a two-blade turbine, which one resident pointed out was both "inefficient and out-of-date".

Many people had health and "flicker" concerns, others about noise, others about the visual impact, harm that could be done to tourism locally, as well as the environment and wildlife.

The meeting heard that there were 27 such applications or turbines already in position in neighbouring parishes and it was estimated there were more than 40 within 10 km.

Mid Devon District Council's website (http://www.middevon.gov.uk">www.middevon.gov.uk) lists more than 150 letters of objection from people and organisations opposing the plan.

IN FAVOUR

Among those is just one of support, from Mr James Briggs, submitted on June 2.

He writes: "I strongly support this application for a wind turbine and believe it will be beneficial to the local area.

"All comments that say it will not support/benefit the local community are factually inaccurate!

"The scheme will provide two local farms with renewable energy which will help reduce the current ever increasing cost of electricity. These farms employ over 10 people between them many of whom live in the local community and for these farms to continue to be successful we have to reduce our production costs.

"The success of these businesses will bring employment to the local area.

"I feel, very strongly, that renewable energy systems should be supported as the long-term effects of our current use of electricity are increasingly detrimental to the environment and in line with government policy this scheme should be passed. The extremely biased anti wind turbine meeting I attended on May 30 in Coldridge turned into a meeting on how to try and rubbish an application and discuss tactics on how best to do it.

"Comments from the biased parish council were not educated responses to the application based on reasoned thought but were personal, antagonistic, comments designed to influence the public attendees.

"I was also somewhat dismayed when an attendee asked whether volume of objections carried as much weight as reasoned comments as he had asked all his friends and family to write objections based on his views and the pre-written letter he had given them.

"I was even more surprised when the local council representative encouraged this sort of action. I agree that there is a need for public consultation but comments should be made in relation to government policy and not personal interest and common misconceptions based on hearsay!

"In light of this I strongly support this sustainable development which meets government policy."

PUBLIC MEETING

Opponents of the turbine, meanwhile, will meet on Wednesday, October 9.

The Taw Turbine Action Group has given notice of the meeting, which will be held in Coldridge Village Hall, from 7.30pm to 9pm.

The group plan to establish a statement of case to the planning inspector and a spokesperson said: "Taw Turbine Action Group will be taking every action available to ensure that the Planning Inspectorate dismiss the appeal."

A date for the hearing has yet to be announced.

• Do you have views about the plan for the turbine at Hawkridge? Are you in favour or against the turbine?

Share your views with Courier readers: email letters to: [email protected]">[email protected] .

Alan Quick