RES UK Ltd., the company hoping to construct a new wind farm in South Cambridgeshire, between the villages of Balsham and West Wratting, has today submitted the planning application to South Cambridgeshire District Council.

The application seeks permission for 13 turbines to be erected. All the details of the project, along with comprehensive environmental assessments, will be available for public viewing at the offices of South Cambridgeshire District Council and at the libraries in Fulbourn and Linton. The environmental assessments cover all possible impacts of the wind farm on people and the environment, and sets out ways in which they will be controlled.

The submission marks the start of a 4 month consultation period, during which time the Council will seek to establish the views of the local community, and represent these views in its final decision, also considering the local targets for renewable energy and recognising the urgent challenge of climate change.

Amy Hinks, of RES said,

"We are encouraged by the level of support for the wind farm locally. With CO2 levels on the rise, this project’s savings of over 67,000 tonnes of CO2 per year are significant, and the wind farm will supply electricity equivalent to the annual usage of over 16,700 homes. That’s a third of all the houses in South Cambridgeshire, at a time when we are increasingly dependent on fuel imports to maintain our modern lifestyles."

Julia Rhodes, Project Manager added,

“We have undertaken thorough and exhaustive research into this site, and we are confident that this is the best site for a wind farm in South Cambridgeshire. RES prides itself on thorough environmental assessments, and we would encourage local people to read our Environmental Statements, which will be made available at South Cambridgeshire District Council’s offices and at the libraries in Fulbourn and Linton.

The Council has 4 months to make a decision and during that period we will be working closely with them, to ensure that all of their questions are answered and to encourage a thorough and open consultation with the local community.”

RES recently took a group of local villagers to see a working wind farm, to enable some of the rumours about noise and visual impact to be dispelled. Irene Lloyd, one of the villagers who came on the trip commented,

“The provision of the proposed wind farm at Wadlow in Cambridgeshire would be nothing but a great asset to our community.

These graceful soothing wind mills are far less intrusive than overhead power cables and should become a vital part of our life if we are to combat the ever increasing pressure on our power supplies. We cannot continue to build new homes in the area without making provision for the increased energy requirements and what better way than by a renewable source, of which we have an abundance in this part of the world.”

On a recent visit to the new Coldham site in north Cambridgeshire we were impressed by how little the turbines intruded on the surroundings. The noise was barely discernable and the area of ground occupied was very small, with crops flourishing all around. It was especially interesting to see the way in which the rooks were busily getting on with their nesting in the trees very close to one of the turbines.”

I very much hope that this planning application is successful and that the work will be completed as soon as possible, for I am convinced that those who now express fears such as an adverse effect on house prices and tourism and the risk of danger on the road will find, as has been the experience in other parts of the country, that those fears are unfounded.”

Details of the project can be found at , where the Non-Technical Summary of the Environmental Statement will be available to download.

ENDS