Kilchattan Windfarm Southend Developer Defeated (Again)!

[jowett63]

Congratulations to the campaigners against the proposed windfarm at Kilchattan, overlooking Southend, who have heard that the Scottish Government's Planning Appeal Reporter has rejected the Developer's appeal against the Council's decision to decline their original planning application. The full (and pretty withering) decision can be read here:
http://www.dpea.scotland.gov.uk/Documen ... 091218.pdf

A flavour of the findings however is:

"I consider that the appellant’s assessment under-represents the harmful impact for residents in the area, a significant number of whom will see the whole wind farm against the skyline at close proximity above them. As a result, residents throughout the local area would have their amenity and quality of life dominated and diminished by the proposed wind farm to a degree that I regard as unacceptable...
I consider the proposed wind farm would impact on the landscape character of the south area of Kintyre to a significant and harmful degree, whereby it would also damage the quality and essential value of the Area of Panoramic Quality...
From many important locations on and off shore the wind farm would look out of place against a landmark landscape that I have described above as iconic. The wind farm would also contrast and be highly visible, especially in clear weather, so that it would have a significantly negative visual impact. The appellant argues that the harm only occurs because the viewpoints are so close to the wind farm. Given the peninsular character of Kintyre, I consider that this immediate local area assumes considerable importance. Put simply, people and the wind farm would be concentrated onto the same small, restricted land mass whereby there would be limited options and spaces available to escape the visual effects of the wind farm. To me, this worsens the significance of the already poor visual effect".

Many of the findings are relevant to other developers who are seeking to exploit the Mull, such as the Scottish Power proposals for The Slate just south of Machrihanish. Let's hope they realise that the game is a bogey.

One final hope is that the Developer does not drag this out further by appealing to the Court of Session, but having tried to bypass local democracy once for profit, they will probably not baulk at ignoring an independent judgement and chancing their mitt in the courts. Communities before profit..