MALCOLM’S Notes

This is a bit of a challenge for me – to control my nerves at public speaking and to control my emotions over this major issue.

That is why I am using these notes, so let’s see how we go.

I’m going to talk about the adverse impact of the proposed Stribers and Ellerside wind turbine scheme, particularly with regard to the landscape and visual intrusion.

I will show you the location of the turbines.

I will show you where you would see them from.


So, firstly, let’s look at the impact of the Proposal. We’ve looked pretty closely at it and we firmly believe that this proposal would have a devastating negative long term effect on the area. There are main issues, but I’m going to concentrate in this talk on landscape damage and visual intrusion.

First let’s be clear where the turbines would be.
1 -J
This first map indicates the location of the turbine site in the general locality.

This is the Cartmel Peninsula.

This is where the turbines would be sited – Stribers and Ellerside. They would be the first on the Cartmel Peninsula. We must not let this be a precedent for more – we’ve seen what’s happened on the Furness Peninsula.

This is the National Park Boundary established in 1951, 57 years ago – a long time ago. I think the drawing of the boundary was a bit arbitrary in places. Certainly our area is as beautiful as many parts in the National Park. Where would the boundary be drawn now? Anyway, you can see clearly how close the proposed site is to the boundary as it is. It is just over the road. And there are 2 houses there in the National Park just a few hundred yards from turbine 6.

Turbine 1 at the bottom is less than 2 miles from Cartmel.

Greenodd which has a full-on view of the turbine ridge is 2.6 miles away.

My next map indicates the particular location of each turbine.
2-J
The site is the pink line and you can see the indicated positions of the 6 turbines.

The span from Turbine 1 to Turbine 6 is nearly a mile.

As I’ve said, the site adjoins the National Park boundary and Turbine 6 is within a few hundred yards of the boundary and of the 2 houses at Grassgarth, which are in the Park itself. Other houses very close to the turbines are 3 at Speel Bank about a third of a mile away, 2 at Burns Farm and the Burns Farm Caravan Site also about a third of a mile away from the turbines. And there are also some houses on the Holker Mosses Road below the ridge which are equally close and which would be dominantly overlooked by the turbines.

The Cumbria Coastal Way runs just below the turbine ridge here and then passes close by the turbines on Stribers. Look how close that is – it’s also on a spring which feeds water to the valley below. The turbines are alongside another popular path on Ellerside (from Howbarrow) – this very popular path would be badly affected – who’d want to walk along there?

The site would be difficult to access – nothing was said about this in the Developer’s Scoping Study.

Let’s look at how access and the whole operation would damage the landscape.

Here are some images that demonstrate this.
3, 4 and 5 J
They are of the Cefyn Croes development in Wales. – look at the sort of ‘TRACKS’ they have to have. Developers always refer to TRACKS - they are in fact new wide roads capable of carrying heavy plant and machinery. Will they come along our lanes? Will they alter the lanes?
6&7 J
See the enormous lorries needed to transport the materials and turbine sections.
8 - J
Look at the damage to the ridge. Cefyn Croes has smaller turbines than those proposed for Stribers and Ellerside.

These images show the reality of these developments.

Now we’ll look at the visual intrusion which would result from these turbines.

I have got some photographs to illustrate this - we’re going on a photographic tour!

We start with a view from Haggs Lane - as it is now – 9-J – looking across across the beautiful village and valley of Cartmel - to a ridge beyond.

This is what Energia in Natura of Italy is proposing 10-J

WELCOME TO CARTMEL? I THINK NOT!!

Now you can see turbine ridge





This is part of a photomontage which we commissioned – it is to scale and accurate. The full panoramic view is displayed as hard copy. This was produced by Stuart Young Visualisations, a professional specialist in this field. The hard copy image, viewed from 4 feet, corresponds with the actual view you see when standing at the actual viewing point. “Normal” photographs make the view look smaller.

Point out Ellerside Ridge and Stribers and Priory and Cartmel Valley – the viewing point is just over 2 miles away from the nearest turbine. There is a path behind the viewing point with similar views and then you go up to the Fell Golf Club and Hampsfell from where there is a also an open view to turbine ridge.

Please do not leave without seeing the full hard copy panoramic photomontage from Haggs Lane.

The next photographs are my amateur photos. They don’t show the turbines themselves, but I will indicate the positions of the turbines and their spread as well as the viewing point.

So for the next photograph we go further back up Haggs Lane to High Fellgate Caravan Site near Grange Cemetary. 11-J
We’re looking from in front of the caravans.
Stribers is here and the spread of turbines is here. The distance is 2 and a half miles. As you can see, the ordinary photo makes it look further away than a photomontage and the way you actually see it.

We go along Wartbarrow Lane now and turn right down Allithwaite Road. 12-J
On this photograph the Priory is on the right and the turbine spread is here – 2 miles away.

Into Cartmel village, turn right at Headless Cross, along the road in front of the Priory School and with your back to the School 13-J - Priory on the right - ridge to the left, The turbines are there again. 2 miles away.

Now we move along the road to the junction of Priest Lane and Aynsome Road. 14-J From the rear garden of a house in Priest Lane - all 6 turbines, clearly visible spread widely across the view. Pretty scary this one. Vicarage on the left, Hard Crag area here, Cartmel Grammar here. Less than 2 miles. Similar views along Aynsome Road.

Next we go to the road in front of Aynsome Manor Hotel 15-J – at the moment our only hotel with visitors from all over the UK and abroad. 6 turbines spread widely from here to here. Less than 2 miles away.

Move on to Field Broughton 16-J Similar wide spread, viewing full on to the turbines. From here to here. Less than 2 miles away.

Then out onto the A590 – the gateway to the Lake District and here, it is in the Lake District National Park. From here you can also see turbine ridge, but I have no photographs yet.

Onto Greenodd on the edge of the National Park – to look at the ridge from this other side 17-J - from the picnic spot beside the A590. 2.6 miles away. Each turbine location is plotted but it does not show actual turbines. When we have got some more funds, we propose to commission an accurate photomontage of this view for people in that area to see. Stribers is here, Ellerside here and Howbarrow to the right.

By remembering the Haggs Lane photomontage 2 miles away from the turbine site, you can imagine the size of the turbines looking from the picnic spot only 2.6 miles away.

Back along the A590, along Holker Mosses Road and turn right to Old Park and the caravan site.
There’s a stunning panoramic view from here looking north up the estuary towards the National Park. If you pan round to the right, you see this view
18-J Low Frith on the left overlooked by Stribers and Ellerside just over a mile away – imagine the size of the turbines from there. There’s another dwelling a bit further north. The turbines would be dominant over this area. Full distance from the Old Park viewing point just 1.7 miles

That’s the tour. Back to our original starting point and the photomontage view. 19-J


I have demonstrated how visible the turbines would be from the surrounding area. If you bear in mind that the distance in the photomontage from Haggs Lane was just over 2 miles you will gather that in most of the other views they will look like that or bigger, though admittedly, you might not see all the parts of the turbines.

And don’t forget that they’re revolving – these turbines create a moving landscape (except when the wind’s not blowing or when they’re down for maintenance).

I hope you can see how much landscape damage and visual intrusion would result from this scheme.

I will leave you with three final comments.

Firstly, if you want help checking where you could see the turbines from, contact me and I’ll try to help.
Secondly, the Developer may well come forward with a modified proposal – smaller turbines and maybe fewer of them – with a view to developing them later. We firmly believe that it is inappropriate to have any turbines in this location.

Finally, in a statement yesterday on TV News, the developer’s representative said that their scheme would help to regenerate the area. Does he not know the area better? Does he not know that this area does not need regeneration? Does he not know that it is this area which regenerates – that it has the qualities which regenerate the people who live and work and visit the area. The developer’s proposed scheme would remove the qualities which enable it to do that.

Thanks for listening. I will now hand you back to Father Robert, our Chairman.

WHERE WE ARE IN THE GENERAL PROCESS AROUND THE TURBINES PLANNING APPLICATION

Environmental Scoping Study – by developer – issued end of May – we’ve looked at that.

This is a pre-cursor to Environmental Impact Assessment which the developer is currently carrying out. This assesses the impact on the environment in terms of landscape, access, noise etc. etc.

In meantime - wind monitoring mast – data on wind speed etc. Planning Meeting on 26th June. I went and Malcolm spoke against granting permission. When the Chairman asked if representatives of the developers wished to respond, there was silence. They had not bothered to come. After 5 votes for and 5 against it was passed by the casting vote of the Chairman. We believe the mast will be erected starting 16th August. Useful for us to have the mast – reference point for height of turbines – light on top – mast will be 225 feet/70 meters high – turbines 410 feet/125 metres – nearly twice as high as mast. We are concerned for there to be no vandalism of the mast – rumour that mast was vandalised in the occasion 8 years ago.

The rest of the process to come is completion of the Environmental Impact Assessment by the developer, planning application to SLDC planning department - the developer’s target date is Spring 2009. Planning Committee decide – if rejected, developer can appeal and it would go to Public Enquiry with an independent inspector. If the application is passed, we have no appeal. So we have got to make sure it is rejected at the Planning Committee stage. We will keep you informed of developments along the way.