Stormy waters

MIXED OPINIONS ON TURBINES

FIVE wind turbines installed off the coast have sparked a storm.

Work on the Blyth Offshore Demonstrator Wind farm in the town was completed this month.

Some have welcomed the turbines, saying they will provide renewable, non-polluting power for around 34,000 homes.

But others have branded the towering structures an “eyesore” and claim they spoil the views of the North Sea.

Kathleen Featherstone, who has lived in Seaton Sluice for more than 30 years, said she was left “saddened” that the landscape had dramatically changed.

In a letter, she said: “I know wind turbines have their uses and unfortunately are a necessary evil these days, but they are ugly and huge.

“The five that have been erected in the bay now dominate what was a beautiful, unspoilt landscape and they are there certainly for the rest of our lifetimes.

“To have them suddenly appear directly opposite our village, with no warning, and placed only a short distance from the coast, I think we are fully justified in feeling distressed.”

But Dr David Golding, an associate of the Institute for Sustainability and honorary chaplain at Newcastle University, argued the wind farm would benefit the environment.

“The financial cost of wind power is falling at the speed no-one predicted 10 years ago, likewise with solar,” he said.

“Wind power generates electricity at amazingly little carbon cost, resulting in the emission of about 5gs of CO2 per kilowatt hour.

“This is compared with nearly 200 times that amount for coal, the most polluting of all readily available fuels.

“Offshore wind power is particularly appropriate given that one of the worst impacts of climate change is likely to be the rise in sea level and increase in storm surges.”

EDF Energy Renewables developed the wind farm after taking over the project from ORE Catapult, formerly Narec, in October 2014.

Matthieu Hue, chief executive officer of EDF Energy Renewables, said the wind farm will help the UK meet its future low carbon electricity needs.

He said: “The five wind turbines have a total generating capacity of 41.5MW and, once operational, they will generate enough low carbon electricity to power around 34,000 homes.

“The size of the turbines installed are in line with the original approval.

“The turbines are the most powerful to be used on an offshore wind farm. It is also the first time that 66kV offshore cables, which bring the electricity onshore, have been used on an offshore wind farm.

“Another innovation is the unique float and submerge method deployed to install the five gravity based foundations, which were floated into position off the coast of Northumberland, submerged onto the seabed and further ballasted to provide the support structures that act as the foundations for the turbines.

“It is the first time that this method has been used on an offshore wind farm.”