As reported in The Cornishman/West Briton Thursday, October 04, 2012

MP welcomes guide on wind power schemes

Thursday, October 04, 2012

The Cornishman

HAYLE MP George Eustice has urged planning officers to stick to new guidelines which he hopes will stop a "gold rush" of wind turbine planning applications being approved unnecessarily.

It is expected planning officers will cast their eyes over more than 200 applications for turbines before the Government cuts subsidies in the new year.

Wind turbines have already sprung up across Cornwall in recent years, at least 20 in west Cornwall, with the latest going before the west sub area planning committee on October 10.

A new set of guidelines was drawn up by Cornwall Council earlier this summer to be implemented with Cornwall's Core Strategy document after 2013 and will act as an emerging policy to guide planners until then.

It provides advice on where to implement wind turbines and guidance on the cumulative effect of multiple approvals.

Mr Eustice said he had been campaigning for months to see a draft policy introduced.

He said: "This is pretty much what I was hoping for. It gives planning committees at Cornwall Council clear guidance to refer wind turbine applications. They must make full use of this guidance.

"The officers should rigorously apply this. I've been calling for this for three or four months. Hopefully the pressure helped bring this to bear."

Adrian Lea, planning delivery manager at Cornwall Council, said: "Cornwall Council is keen to assist residents and communities who wish to generate their own electricity and the authority has therefore prepared planning guidance documents, including onshore wind, to assist in the preparation, submission and determination of applications for wind turbines."

The planning documents can be viewed at www.cornwall.gov.uk/renewableenergy