Turbine plan threatens industrial wonder

Sir, – The Bell Rock Lighthouse off Arbroath is the world’s oldest working sea-washed lighthouse, listed as one of the Seven Wonders Of The Industrial World and a Category A-listed historic building.

I’m fully in favour of wind and solar energy but I’m also fully in favour of protecting our national heritage and natural beauty.

It strikes me that developing a nautical industrial estate of 72 wind turbines which, at 290 metres high to turbine blade tips will dwarf the nearby 35m lighthouse, is not protecting the environment of the Bell in a way that it would have been had it been on land.

I believe each turbine in the Inchcape Wind Farm will be powered by a diesel engine to get the turbines moving from stationary.

This will presumably involve occasional ship -to-turbine transfer of diesel fuel with the attendant possibility of spillage if something goes wrong.

The effect of the turbines on wildlife both above and below the surface, the visual pollution of the turbines and their navigational lights, and the fact they will reach closer to the Angus shore than the Bell itself should all be taken into account.

The figure of 1,900 jobs being created with the development of the wind farm might be plausible, but it would be interesting to hear what the job benefit to Angus itself will be.

I understand the electricity generated will be conducted to Cockenzie in the Firth of Forth.

It’s possible some Angus jobs might be generated but they would be in Dundee, at best, should the port be lucky enough to accommodate any contracts.

At the end of the day, it seems that although the Bell and its home county of Angus with its magnificent unspoiled cliffs and coastline will be the wind farm’s closest neighbours, the direct benefit to both is basically zero.

Unless you like looking at wind farms. Ian Lamb. Inchcape Road, Arbroath.

Though wind and nautical energy is a good thing, we still need to protect our natural heritage, argues one correspondent.