SNCpolicydocument

Three weeks ago, South Northamptonshire Council released their draft Wind Farm Policy document for public consultation. HSGWAG have read the document and are very pleased with the line that SNC has taken. SNC's key objective is to protect what is special about South Northamptonshire, whilst balancing the need to support renewable energy projects in appropriate locations. It goes as far as it can (without contravening Government policy) to set a strong local policy.

The document (if it remains unchanged) has a framework which we believe can be used to argue robustly that the Spring Ridge site is unsuitable. Broadview of course will argue the opposite, but that is where your individual objections become so important. Fundraising is also key to ensure that we are able to appoint experts on our behalf to counteract the Environmental Impact Statements that Broadview will make, stating that the impact to our locality is acceptable.

The Council takes the view that the key material question is whether the proposal would have a detrimental effect on the locality generally, and on amenities that ought, in the public interest, to be protected. In doing so, it will place particular importance on landscape and visual impact, biodiversity, soils and hydrology, cultural heritage and local amenity. Particular scrutiny will be paid to the effect on inhabitants within 2km of the site.

The policy also requests that, in the interests of transparency, the developer makes public its wind data. We very much welcome this as we expect it will highlight that the wind resource in our area is not high, nor constant, and expose this proposal for what it is, a money-making scheme.