In this day and age, when we are shouting desperately for an end to fossil fuels, it seems counter intuitive to have to fight against a new wind farm right? I don't particularly mind the odd cluster of wind turbines on the horizon. They have come to be a symbol of a new cleaner greener world - one that we all want right? So why are we all freaking out about Calderdale Wind Farm?
Deep breath.
The proposed plan is to build the largest onshore wind farm in the UK. There would be SIXTY FIVE huge wind turbines over nine square miles of 'site of special scientific interest' moorland above the National Trust estate of Hardcastle Crags, Blake Dean and Brontë Country...
If you've ever walked over the moors between Haworth and Hebden Bridge this is where we are talking about. Or perhaps you've driven into Hebden over the moors from Haworth? That spectacular view that stretches for miles and miles,THAT'S what we're talking about.
photo by Roger Nunn
But it's not just about spoiling our epic views.
Each one of these turbines would be over 200 metres tall (that's 42 metres taller than the Blackpool Tower) and each turbine would need it's own road and all this would be happening on our precious carbon sequestering peat bog. Building the turbines here would release MORE carbon than the turbines would generate in their short life, which is only about 25 years. Peat bogs are just as important as rainforests! They have been forming for thousands of years. You can't just replace them when they are gone.
Paving over the moors above us poses a huge flood risk to our already at risk town.
Then there are the ground nesting birds that return to the moor each spring. Curlews, golden plovers, lapwings, skylarks, redshanks and snipe. Oh my goodness, these birds are already endangered. I can't bear it.
photos by Lesley Jackson
This is NOT about green energy. It's all about money. Calderdale Wind Farm Ltd is a Saudi-owned and Saudi-backed company. A local multi millionaire land owner will sell them the land if the planning application goes ahead. We can't let that happen. Will you help us oppose this?
Apparently 30 years ago this month, a huge number of internationally renowned artists including Ted Hughes and Iris Murdoch wrote an open letter opposing a large wind farm development on these moors. It was overturned. A new open letter has been written and will be published in the Times Literary Supplement today (Thursday 8th Feb)! There is hope!
The Stop Calderdale Windfarm Website has loads of information and a What You Can Do page with a printable letter ready to send to our local planning officer. Wherever you are in the world, would you send this letter? Every single objection counts towards protecting our already struggling planet.
The curlews and skylarks will thank you with their song.
6 comments
Thanks for your blog and the beautiful pictures. You write that the wind turbines release more carbon when they erected than they produce in their lifetime. Do you have any scientific evidence of this – not that this is the only issue that matters?
Thanks,
Finn
When I first heard about this, coming home from holiday, I felt as though I’d been stabbed in the heart. I can’t think of an area of land in the whole world that means more to me as a person and as a landscape and wildlife artist. For 37 years I’ve wandered thousands of miles around this beautiful wild seeming place and watched all the secret lives of the birds and creatures that live there including common lizards. This will all be destroyed for GREED and the instigators have no interest whatsoever in the environment or combatting climate change. Thank you for creating this post Hannah.
I totally agree with all you say. I have in fact myself written to my local paper (Ilkley Gazette) on this subject, following which my letter highlighting these dreadful proposals was published in this week’s edition, so bringing to the attention of a wider readership. Only a few weeks ago, their ‘weekly walk’ featured this area in some detail and described how special the landscape, the terrain and the literary connections were.
Completely agree Hannah. I’ll be sending a letter and I’m so sorry you’re all having to even contemplate losing such an important and beautiful place.
We have a similar problem here in Malvern but with solar panels. Chapel Hill Farm is a proposal to cover 270 acres of land with solar panels on behalf of a German Coal company who want to transition away from fossil fuels. Good they want to move away from coal, but it’s set to cover land currently used by lots of wildlife including skylarks, and they won’t reduce the size because then it won’t be profitable enough. People who have spoken against it are dismissed by the company as climate deniers.
I’m all for solar panels and wind farms but there has to be a balance and at the moment it seems a bit like the Wild West’s Gold Rush – a free for all and those who are already abusing the earth seek to make even more money with little care for the planet they’re allegedly saving.
A wind farm of this scale should be placed off shore, not on heather moorland, depriving its wildlife of safe habitat and humans their recreation and contemplation.