News Go-ahead given for fourteen wind turbines
Fourteen wind turbines are to be put up near Whitgift after a planning application put forward by the Co-operative Group was approved by East Riding Council last week.
The 110-metre high turbines will be built on grade one agricultural land owned by the Co-op Group at Pasture Farm in the village.
The scheme will generate 28 megawatts of clean electricity - enough to supply approximately 17,000 homes and prevent 60,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide from being released into the atmosphere. The windfarm, which is to be named Twin Rivers, will be the group's second rural wind farm.
Climate change is at the top of the Co-operative's list of social goals with 98 per cent of the electricity used by the business already coming from renewable sources, of which five per cent comes from their own generation projects.
The Co-operative's target is to reduce their overall energy usage by 25 per cent by 2012. This will be achieved through a programme of further wind farm developments as well as other projects involving micro-wind turbines, hydropower, biomass and ground-source heat. The Twin Rivers wind farm will form an important part of this strategy.
Rob Ellis, sustainable development manager at the Co-operative Group, said: "The approval of this planning application is excellent news for us and the people of Goole as they can be proud of the fact that so much green energy will be produced in their area, preventing significant carbon dioxide emissions. For us, it represents recognition of our social and community responsibilities as a Co-operative business.
"Thanks to the business diversity within the group, in planning, land management and finance, we now have world-class expertise in making schemes like [Twin Rivers] a reality, as we have at our first rural wind farm in Coldham, Cambridgeshire. Most importantly, we recognise the importance of involving local people at the outset of the project and giving them direct input into all aspects of wind farm schemes."
The scheme was objected to by the Twin Rivers, Reedness and Swinefleet Parish Councils, as well as Snaith and Cowick Town Council. Twin Rivers PC claimed that the proposal would put both residents and wildlife in "great jeopardy". Goole Town Council approved of the plans, stating that they agreed with the principal of renewable energy.
As part of the plans, Co-op will be required to set up a community fund to provide the community with facilities of an environmental and educational benefit.
They must also provide financial security for the restoration of the site at the end of its 25-year term.
Published on 10th April 2008 in News.
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