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British Wind Developers Win Crucial High Court Case

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April 15, 2013

British Wind Developers Win Crucial High Court Case

By Cheryl Kaften
TMCnet Contributor

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Today, a judge on the High Court in Britain—one of the courts of last resort in the nation—has ruled that wind developers may site their turbines as little as one-quarter of a mile (or 350 meters) from residential areas.

Judge John Howells’s verdict in the critical test case came as a disappointment to the local complainant, a  borough in the County of Buckinghamshire—and will have consequences for national planning laws.

The Milton Keynes Borough Council had gone to court in hopes of getting approval to impose a minimum distance of three-quarters of a mile (or 1.2 kilometers) between wind farms and private homes; and thereby preventing wind energy firm RWE Npower Renewable Ltd. of Swindon, England, from erecting its 410-foot-high (125-meter-high) turbines locally. 




Image courtesy of Shutterstock

According to The Telegraph, RWE successfully argued that the “emerging policy” of imposing a sliding scale of “buffer zones” based on the height of turbines contradicted its existing local development plan.

Judge Howells stressed that he could not rule on the benefits of wind turbines, but he concluded that there was "no objective justification" for arbitrary proximity restrictions for new turbines, adding that the policy was "plainly in conflict" with established planning guidance.

Milton Keynes Council will now have to revise the policy—and there is some room to maneuver:  The judge’s verdict rejected RWE's argument that the council's stance was also unlawful because it conflicted with national renewable energy targets– a decision that could leave the door open for councils to place different restrictions on proposed renewable energy projects.

However, Dr. Wayne Cranstone, RWE Npower Renewables onshore development and projects director, said the ruling established an important precedent. "On the matter of buffer zone policies more generally, the judge concluded that national guidance 'plainly indicates' that local authorities should not have a policy that planning permission for a wind turbine should be refused if a minimum separation distance is not met," he said in a statement.

He added that the company was keen to continue to work "in partnership" with Milton Keynes Council. "We remain committed to investing in renewable and sustainable energy solutions for Milton Keynes and the UK," he said. "The investments we're making bring economic benefits to areas hosting wind farms, create thousands of jobs across the country and assist in reducing the impact of climate change and increasing the security of energy supply."

Maf Smith, deputy chief executive at London-based trade association RenewableUK, said the decision would provide the wind industry with "the certainty it needs to get on with the job of generating more clean electricity for British homes."

"RenewableUK strongly believes it's inappropriate for councils to impose arbitrary limits on where renewable energy projects should be located," he said in a statement. "Blanket bans and buffer zones are blunt instruments that take no account of local conditions. Each proposal should be examined on a case-by-case basis so that a well-balanced decision can be reached. As two-thirds of the British public consistently support wind energy, their views should be given due weight in the democratic process."

According to BusinessGreen, Councillor Andrew Geary, Leader of Milton Keynes Borough Council commented, “It is rather ironic that the council already had separation distances in place within policy and the supplementary planning document was quashed as a result of this point, alone. Had we had no policy, we would have won. Any authority that doesn't have a separation distance in policy should sit up and take notice of today's judgment. “I have no doubt the action the council has taken is in the best interest of the residents of Milton Keynes and we will be looking at how we move forward.”




Edited by Rich Steeves

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