Ban on onshore wind farms is blown away by Labour

A move to end the effective ban on onshore wind farms is a step in the right direction, says Midlands energy expert Ron Fox.

He was commenting on the first speech by the new Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, who said that she that she would end the “absurd” restriction on new wind farms and to speed up decisions that need to be taken nationally, not locally.

She said delivering our clean power mission would help boost Britain’s energy independence, save money on energy bills, support high-skilled jobs and tackle the climate crisis and she wanted to double onshore wind energy by 2030.

“I was delighted to hear this as one of the government’s first policies,” said Ron, of Noreus Ltd on the University of Keele Science and Innovation Park.

“It means a huge stride towards delivering on our climate goals while at the same time paving the way for lower power bills for householders, as renewables produce some of the cheapest and cleanest energy available.”

Rules put in place by David Cameron in 2015 had decreed that a single planning objection could scupper an onshore wind project.

Last September Michael Gove, the then communities secretary, said the ban would be lifted. However, two footnotes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), remained, making building new projects almost impossible.

Analysis of the government’s renewable energy planning database found that no applications for new onshore wind projects were submitted after Gove’s announcement.

Ron admitted there were some disadvantages to onshore wind farms, which are turbines on land rather than over water.

Firstly, the older turbines had problems with the blades killing migratory birds and harming animals while they also gave a noise which sounded like a lawnmower and which could disturb neighbours.

On top of that because onshore turbines don’t run year-round, they require fossil-fuel backups when the wind speed is slow and this is also not helped by physical blockages from buildings and surrounding hills or mountains.

But he said with modern planning and careful consideration of the sites these problems can now be overcome.

But Ron said there were many advantages with an important one being cost. The infrastructure required for onshore wind power is significantly less expensive, sometimes up to half the cost of offshore wind. Also, it can provide investment payback as quickly as two years.

They are quick to install and can be built within a few months, unlike other energy sources like nuclear power stations, which can take more than 20 years to build. When in operation, onshore wind turbines have low maintenance costs.

He pointed out it is the least expensive form of renewable energy compared to solar and nuclear power sources.

He said research by Friends of the Earth found that using less than 3 per cent of land in England for onshore wind and solar could produce 13 times more clean energy that now generated – enough to power all households in England twice over.

Also, the industry body, RenewableUK said that green energy targets could be met using fewer turbines than previously thought because modern turbines are bigger and more powerful.

“Overall,” concluded Ron, “the advantages of onshore wind and the sustainable energy it can create outweighs the potential disadvantages.”

For more details on cheaper green energy call him on 0845 474 6641 or go to www.noreus.co.uk

Caption: The answer is blowing in the wind – ending the effective ban on onshore wind farms is a good move, says Ron Fox.