Getting on with my life and thinking about things.
Just saw this news about the Lewis wind factories:
And now it turns out that the consortium which is to built the darn thing has not taken into consideration that the Lewis Moor, where the turbines are to be built, is subject to a European Habitat Directive. This was also not spotted by WIC. This means that the planning application is illegal.
The EU does not take kindly to those who ignore its directives. It is likely that this planning application may yet end up in the European Courts. A public inquiry also seems inevitable.
Source: Northern Trip.
I think you might find that the Comhairle took it into account with their terms and conditions (you'll see that there are various environmental and migratory studies proposed, Management Plan 5e). It was certainly mentioned by MWT.
Updated map of the proposed development.
Letter to the Exec.
"The Comhairle decided to recommend to the Scottish Ministers that the application should be approved subject to a range of terms, measures and conditions as detailed in this document." [source: CNES]
50 conditions in a 37 page document. No doubt the corporate lawyers have already been through them so that in a few years time they can punch right through them. Sorry, I believe in the "give them an inch, and they'll take a mile" approach to the world. Sadly, I've yet to be proved wrong.
...so, no, it can't be that easy.
2 comments:
Aktoman,
Found your reference to my blog, thanks for the heads-up. Went through the Comhairle's document to which you linked, and the words European, EU or Habitat Directive are NOT mentioned nor referred to. As you will have read in my blog entry, it was the RSPB who first brought this to light.
Fingers crossed then.
My folk are out in Newmarket, Dad's folk are in Pairc, and my maternal g/mother is from Leurbost. So, sat in Cromore, looking to North Lochs, there are already 2 'small-medium' turbines overlooking the region.
I'm all for renewables, but not money-grabbing ones that damage the physical enironment. Some of Pairc has solar-powered street lights. Stornoway has had solar-powered flats since the late 80's. In fact, an old lecturer of mine, Doctor Saluja [http://www.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/councillors/contact/ward44.asp] helped design them.
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