Giant wind farm plan could blight Bronte country
Saudi scheme will be England’s largest
THE stunning landscape that inspired Wuthering Heights is the battleground in a showdown between literature lovers and a shopping tycoon.
Businessman Richard Bannister – a Lancastrian – is in partnership with a Saudi Arabiabacked company to transform the moors between West Yorkshire’s Haworth and Hebden Bridge into England’s largest onshore windfarm.
The project would see 65 towering turbines – each taller than Blackpool Tower – erected on the heath said to have inspired Emily Bronte to write her 1847 classic.
The ruined farmhouse of Top Withens, on the heath near Haworth, is said to be the origin of Cathy’s home Wuthering Heights in the novel.
The windfarm aims to generate substantial renewable energy, which, according to supporters, is sufficient to power 286,491 homes annually, while saving 426,246 tons of carbon emissions.
Developers submitted a ‘scoping’ document for the windfarm in September, but a comprehensive environmental impact assessment must be made before they can apply for planning.
But fervent opposition within the local community is gaining momentum. Critics say the plans could damage the moorland’s carbontrapping peat bogs, threatening the flood-prone valleys below.
The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds has voiced concerns over the impact on nesting curlews, lapwings and golden plovers.
The Bronte Society has also raised objections, arguing the development would have ‘a significant and detrimental impact on an iconic local viewpoint and worldrenowned landscape’ that inspired Bronte’s literary masterpiece.
Lydia Macpherson and Nick MacKinnon, poets living on the Haworth side of the moor, told the Guardian they feared the alleged insensitivity of the developers toward the wildlife and cultural significance of the area.
‘People come from all over the world to see where Cathy and Heathcliff lived,’ said Mr MacKinworst, non. The developers are Saudis, so what do they know of curlews and Heathcliff, and why should they care?’
Mr MacKinnon said Mr Bannister – who owns a chain of discount shopping centres in the area – should ‘know better’.
He added: ‘At best, this application is criminally negligent about wildlife, flooding and heritage. At it shows contempt for the people in the Worth and Calder valleys, and the imaginations of millions elsewhere, by entitled and selfish owners.’
A spokesman for Saudi- owned Calderdale Windfarm Ltd said: ‘We are committed to responsible development that respects the landscape, minimises disruption to wildlife habitats and mitigates potential impacts on the local environment.
‘We recognise that concerns have been raised about heritage preservation and have appointed experts in cultural heritage, such as Wessex Archaeology, to guide us in preserving local heritage sites, including the Bronte heritage, and are committed to considering these concerns as part of our ongoing design process.’
The spokesman added that although funding for the planning phase had come from Saudi investment, if given planning permission, most shares would be sold to UK-based investment funds.
‘What do they know of Heathcliff?’