Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Renewables ‘crucial’
Hopes local economy will benefit from ruling
DUNDEE politicians have welcomed news that a wind farm will be built in the Firth of Tay.
Soon-to-be council leader John Alexander and Conservative MSP Bill Bowman said today they are both keen to see the local economy boosted by the farms, following a ruling at the Court of Session.
Scotland’s most senior judge reversed a legal decision on Tuesday to halt the building of four wind farms — one of which will be sited 10 miles from the Angus coast.
Scottish ministers approved the sites, including the Inch Cape farm, in the Firth of Tay, in 2014, along with three in the Firth of Forth. The plans were then shelved in July last year when RSPB Scotland lawyers argued that the ministers were in breach of the requirements placed upon them by the law.
However, this week, Lord Carloway ruled that the law had been interpreted incorrectly and reversed the decision.
SNP councillor Mr Alexander said he would be “pushing” for the local authority to be a part of the work.
He said: “The council is just one part of a much larger jigsaw and we need to work closely with industry, particularly Forth Ports, to make the strongest case possible.
“As part of our last administration’s budget proposals, we included sixfigure funding to promote the city’s credentials, namely in decommissioning.
“However, as part of that overarching strategy we are promoting Dundee as a strategically important operator for industry, whether that be renewables or decommissioning.”
Once completed, the Inch Cape wind farm will house up to 110 turbines.
Mr Bowman said: “This is a positive move that could prove fruitful for Scotland’s energy sector as well as the Tayside economy. Offshore wind farms have in the past been a popular way to source energy — producing energy without the blotting of landscape that comes with onshore wind turbines.
“Now that these plans are in place, it’s crucial that Dundee and Tayside get their acts together quickly to ensure that Dundee will, at last, benefit from these renewables.”
A spokesman for developers Red Rock Power said it would continue to “work collaboratively” with the RSPB and other stakeholders of the project to minimise environmental impacts.