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Peace at last for family who won court battle to silence turbine  

6/11/2013

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Credit:  By Victoria Allen | Scottish Daily Mail | 25 May 2013 | ~~

A family whose lives were made a misery by a neighbour’s noisy wind turbine have become the first in Scotland to get a court order to shut it down.

Retired civil servant Aileen Jackson, 54, was left powerless when her neighbour built a 64ft turbine only 300 yards from her house.

It kept her family awake every night, producing the noise of a ‘small helicopter’ and leaving them exhausted.

The farmer next door, who was selling the energy produced to the national Grid, refused to switch the machine off.

So Mrs Jackson became the first person in Scotland to fight a turbine in the courts – with the legal fees covered by her home insurance.

The farmer, from the Renfrewshire village of Uplawmoor, did not contest the noise abatement order and backed down. This week, a permanent court order was made to prevent him turning on the turbine again.

Campaigners hope the case will set a precedent for householders whose lives are blighted by turbines. Individual windmills are springing up across the country as landowners seek to cash in on the subsidies available.

Mrs Jackson said: ‘We became increasingly desperate after a two-and-a-half year fight against this turbine.

‘Smaller turbines are actually noisier than the big wind farms because they spin faster, creating a different character of sound. This one sounded like a small helicopter in what had been a completely peaceful, rural place.

‘Every time the prevailing wind was in our direction, we heard it, even with the windows shut.

‘We couldn’t sleep and my son quit his third year of university because he couldn’t work through the exhaustion.

‘My husband, an HGV driver, was worried he would fall asleep at the wheel and cause an accident.’

Mrs Jackson, 58-year-old husband William and sons Andrew, 26, and Brian, 25, first tried to get a noise abatement order through east Renfrewshire Council. But because the turbine fell within the acceptable decibel level under planning conditions, it was not granted.

The family could no longer sit in their conservatory or have people to stay because the turbine was so loud and even their six horses were initially frightened by the noise.

They made the decision to contact a solicitor and apply through the courts for help. The farmer decided not to fight the application and switched off the noisy machinery.

On May 20, in a ground-breaking step, the court made a permanent order to prevent ‘any recurrence of the noise nuisance’ from the turbine at Mid Uplaw farm. It has effectively banned the owner from ever switching it on again.

‘The relief and the peace when the turbine was switched off were remarkable,’ Mrs Jackson said. ‘It was really emotional after almost three years living with the noise.

‘I just want people to know that they are not too small to fight these turbines, that they don’t need money because their home insurance can cover it, and that they can be successful.’

The Hastie Stable Faculty of Scottish Advocates put the details of the ground-breaking case on its website. Its statement reads: ‘In an interesting application thought to be one of the first of its kind in Scotland, John Campbell, QC, was instructed to make an application to a sheriff for a noise abatement order.

‘The environmental Protection Act 1990, section 82, provides a little-known but simple method for members of the public to do this for themselves.’

Graham Lang, of campaign group Scotland Against Spin, said: ‘Many people in Scotland are being forced to put up with excessively noisy turbines.

‘Aileen Jackson’s refusal to give up and her pioneering case now offer many others a way out of their misery.’

The turbine owner, Campbell Erskine, could not be reached for comment.

Source:  By Victoria Allen | Scottish Daily Mail | 25 May 2013 |

https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2013/05/26/peace-at-last-for-family-who-won-court-battle-to-silence-turbine/
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Stormont -Windwatch Reception

5/25/2013

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PictureSome of the Windwatch Delegation at Stormont- 23rd May 2013
A large deputation from the Windwatch Umbrella Group from across the province met with members of the Environment Committee in Stormont on Thursday 23rd May.
Representatives from all the major parties were present and congratulated the lobbiests on the quality of the presentation and the amount of factual information concerning the adverse effects of wind turbines and wind farms.
The politicians were generally unaware of the adverse effects associated with wind turbines as the wind industry fails to make anyone aware of the hidden truths when submitting applications for major projects.
The hidden cost of the wind industry: the division of families and strong tight knit communities, the quality of life in the rural countryside is gone forever, the devaluation of properties close to wind farms and wind turbines, the damage to the well being of people forced to live beside these monstrosities  the environmental damage of the countryside, most of which are Areas Of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the negative visual impact and damage to wildlife and birds, the significant economic loss of tourism and loss of jobs as a result.
Of particular concern was the suggestion that current wind farms could be operating illegally under European Legislation and that individual land owners maybe liable to litigation in the future with regards to claims from nearby property owners.
The Windwatch Umbrella Group are also meeting with members of the Health Committee in Stormont to highlight the adverse effects of wind turbines and wind farms and the growing amount of worldwide medical evidence to support these claims is substantial.

Further information is available on our website: www.windwatch.co.uk


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Resources Page launched!

2/9/2013

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We have decided to put together a page especially with resources to share with others so that you can study and use what information you find useful to your own particular needs.
There are many reports and findings covering a variety of Wind Turbine issues.
We will add to this page as we get more content, if you have any information or links that you can share please use the contact page on our site.
Click here to see the new page.
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The Performance of Wind Farms in the United Kingdom and Denmark

2/8/2013

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Thanks to a local supporter for the attached report into the Performance (or lack off Performance) of Wind Farms in the United Kingdom and Denmark.
Very interesting reading!

"These findings have important implications for policy towards wind generation in the UK. First,
they suggest that the subsidy regime is extremely generous if investment in new wind farms is profitable despite the decline in performance due to age and over time. Second, meeting
the UK Government’s targets for wind generation will require a much higher level of wind capacity – and, thus, capital investment – than current projections imply. Third, the structure
of contracts offered to wind generators under the proposed reform of the electricity market should be modified since few wind farms will operate for more than 12–15 years."
Click here to download document

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Ireland to build 'giant' wind turbines to power UK homes!

1/24/2013

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UK and Irish ministers will today sign an agreement that could see some of the world's largest wind turbines built across the Irish midlands.

Stretching more than 600 feet (180 metres) in the air, the towers are set to generate energy for millions of UK homes from 2017.

The companies involved say the Irish power is a cheaper form of renewable than UK offshore wind.

But environmentalists have described the scheme as "crazy".

They say it risks damaging Ireland's landscape.

Under the plan, a number of companies are seeking to erect hundreds of wind turbines across the boggy midlands of Ireland. The power generated would be transferred to the UK via undersea cables that would join the grid at two points in Wales.

Full story:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21147279

What do you think?

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