Planning approval for wind farms drops by half

Plans to provide a quarter of the UK’s electricity from wind turbines have been put in jeopardy due to opposition from local communities.

A report in today’s Independent says only one in three wind farms in England are currently getting planning approval and in the last 12 months to September there has been a 50% drop in planning approvals while Scotland has also seen planning approvals fall.

There are now more than 230 separate local campaign groups against wind farms operating across the UK, from Scotland and Kent to Norfolk, Yorkshire and Cornwall.

The figures will be revealed in a report due out next week and cast doubt on the ability of the government to reach its target of generating 20% of all energy needs from renewable sources by 2020.

Earlier this week Vestas, the Danish wind turbine manufacturer, announced it was closing five production plants across Scandinavia with the loss of 3,000 jobs. The company said the surge in demand for wind power it had hoped for in Europe had not materialised.