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Windfarm gets backing of Aberdeenshire Planning

A Wind TurbineAberdeenshire Planners have recommended the proposed windfarm at St John's Hill be approved at the meeting of the Kincardine and Mearns Area Comittee next week.
Douglas Gray, head of planning and building standards, said: "The proposed windfarm site is found to be in broad compliance with national and local policy, subject to compliance with the recommended conditions. Local environmental and amenity issues can be satisfactorily addressed at the proposed site and it represents a good opportunity for development as a windfarm, thereby making a contribution to the Scottish Renewables obligation."
Of the 738 letters sent to the planning department regarding the application, 63% were in favour and 37% against. Representative of the developers and BACKWAG will be addressing the Area Comittee on Tuesday before they make their decision.
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Submitted by stephen on August 24, 2006 - 14:06.

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I wonder how many of the

Submitted by Skylark (not verified) on September 1, 2006 - 17:10.
I wonder how many of the 738 letters came from locals. Both the pro and anti wind lobby groups actively encourage supporters to write to local authorities throughout Scotland either in support of, or against, plans even though they will not be affected by them. Surely a simple pro / anti numbers game undermines any local democratic expression? Greater weight should be given to those letters coming from people who will be affected by them for the next 25 odd years.
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letters

Submitted by stephen on September 6, 2006 - 13:33.

All the letters are published here, so you could count them up if you really wanted. However, as the planners said in their report (p15);

"This application has attracted a significant level of public interest both from those who are in favour and those who are against this proposal. The Planning Service's recommendation is based on inter alia the Council's Policies, the responses from the various consultees and points made by interested parties. The degree of weight to be attached to the representations should not be based purely on the numbers but the nature and content of the points they highlight."

In other words - it looks as though they aren't so naive as to consider just the raw numbers, but instead are considering the quality of the arguments put.  As I understand it, the planning department only consider the application in terms of compliance to the existing planning guidelines, so that's pretty much what you'd want them to do antway - i.e. base their decision on demonstrable facts. The "local democracy" bit comes in at the next stage when the area comittee consider the application.

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