A hardy group of STEMM supporters spent the day in Bala recently giving out information about Scottish Power Renewables’ plans for a massive wind farm only a few miles from the heart of the town.

During the day the group chatted with not only local residents, but also visitors to the area who were all keen to sign STEMM’s petition as they did not want to see such a beautiful area ruined by 25 wind turbines which, at 145 metres or 475 feet, would be the tallest currently onshore in the UK.  One of the fears is that the development could deter visitors to the Upper Dee Valley at a time when the economy is already struggling.

STEMM members were also helping promote a new UK wide body which is giving a voice to the hundreds of anti wind farm groups across the country.  NOW, or National Opposition to Windfarms, was launched on April 19 at the Palace of Westminster by the eminent lawyer and politician Lord Carlile of Berriew CBE QC.  More details about the organisation can be found at http://www.nowind.org.uk/

One point that was raised by a number of tourists who were heading on to the Snowdonia National Park after leaving Bala, was why the Upper Dee Valley had been chosen by SPR for such a major scheme.  This was difficult to answer given that the area lies outside TAN8, the seven areas designated by the Welsh Assembly government in 2005 for large scale wind farms, with the aim of curbing their proliferation in the stunning Welsh countryside.  However, it could be that SPR is using this as a test case as, if this scheme gets the go ahead, then it will have set a precedent which could open up swathes of the Welsh landscape to this form of industrial development.

Therefore, this is a fight that MUST be won, not only for our area, but potentially for many other unspoilt parts of Wales, too.

More than just daffodils are making their appearance at the moment in the area around Mynydd Mynyllod, as opponents of the massive wind farm have been busy putting up bilingual protest banners near their homes.

The aim is to encircle the area, which includes Llandrillo, Cynwyd, Llandderfel, and communities along the busy A494, to ensure that visitors, as well as local residents, are aware of the threat that this beautiful landscape faces if Scottish Power’s scheme for 25, 145 metre, turbines gets the go ahead.

Already STEMM has several hundred local people signed up on its supporters’ list and the numbers are growing, including people who fear their businesses could be impacted if the proposed wind farm leads to a fall in visitor numbers.  Chair of the group, Andrew Jedwell, said: “I’m delighted with the increasing level of public support that we are seeing at STEMM as more and more people are prepared to declare their opposition to this completely inappropriate proposal.

“These giant turbines will dominate the lovely landscape of the Dee Valley and will undermine the tourism sector which is such an important part of the local economy.”

   A fantastic time was had by all when STEMM recently held a ‘Windy Supper’ in Ysgol Isaf Community Hall in Cynwyd, which raised nearly £600 for the fund to fight Scottish Power’s plans for a large scale wind farm just outside the village.

Organisers of the evening, which initially had a bean theme (!), were June Lister and Hilary Madeley, who were helped by an enthusiastic team, rather too numerous to list, who cooked, set tables, and washed up.  To help the evening go with a swing musical entertainment was provided by pianist, Chris Simms.

Secretary of STEMM, Hilary Madeley, said:  ‘Everyone seemed to have enjoyed themselves and it was wonderful to have such a good atmosphere.  We were all delighted to have raised so much money, too.  June and I would like to thank everyone who helped and all those who attended the supper.’

STEMM is now looking forward to organising other fun-filled, fund raising events and the group is on the look-out for fresh ideas and volunteers

Turbine to scale in centre of Cynwyd.

Clwyd South MP, Susan Elan Jones, has given her backing to STEMM’s fight to stop Scottish Power building 25, 145 metre (475 feet) high turbines on the ridges and slopes of Mynydd Mynyllod in the Dee Valley.  The site, which is not one of the seven areas designated by the Welsh Assembly for a large scale wind farm, lies at the foothills of the Berwyn mountains and has many communities, such as Llandrillo, Cynwyd and Llandderfel, dotted around it.  STEMM (Stop The Exploitation of Mynydd Mynyllod) said they are delighted by the MP’s support.

In a statement, Susan Elan Jones, said:  ‘The local area where the wind turbines are being proposed relies on its astounding natural beauty to draw visitors and to provide an income through tourism. The transformation of the Dee Valley skyline will affect businesses, house prices, local communities, and noise levels, and the views of local people and long established planning requirements must be taken into account with these developments.

Of course, we all recognise the need to push for greener energy, and I have backed campaigns to get more support for things like solar panels.  However, we do need to be careful about how we achieve energy policies and they should not be the deciding factor in determining local planning applications.  The views of local people and businesses should be taken into account with equal weighting to the voices of the energy companies themselves.

Planners need to understand that if we are going to achieve our green energy targets, we have to work with communities, not against them.“

The beauty of Mynydd Mynyllod by photographer Bill Spalding.

No one, surely, can deny that the countryside around Mynydd Mynyllod is simply stunning, and, to some extent, this has already been acknowledged by the recent extension to the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty which now stops just short of Cynwyd.

What remains rather odd, however, is why the boundary had to be drawn there.  Why wasn’t the AONB carried on further along the Dee Valley to take in other villages, such as Llandrillo and Llandderfel?  After all, these communities, together with Cynwyd, lie at the foothills of the Berwyns, a vast open moorland area designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), due to its wide range of wildlife species.  So, we now have an AONB less than a kilometre from the edge of the proposed wind farm, SSSI areas right alongside and, of course, the magnificent Snowdonia National Park within sight.  This wind farm would stick out like a pulsing sore thumb in the midst of this unspoilt countryside.

Interestingly, during his recent visit to the area Environment Minister, John Griffiths, said, “Here in Wales we are blessed with an amazing natural environment. It is crucial to our economy and a big driver behind Wales’ thriving tourism industry.  My recent decision to approve the designation of this area as an AONB is proof of the Welsh Government’s commitment to managing the area as effectively and efficiently as possible to ensure the best and most sustainable outcome for Wales.  Indeed we expect the ‘AONB’ brand to bring in a significant number of new visitors to the area, to drive up tourism and to extend the enjoyment of the area’s natural beauty to a wider audience.”

Photographer Bill Spalding says that the wind turbines would tower through the low cloud and destroy the scene completely.

Popular broadcaster Iolo Williams is a familiar face to many of us for his fantastic wildlife and open air programmes in English and Welsh on the BBC and S4C.  And he certainly knows his stuff as, after initially working on a hill farm, then in forestry, he then started work for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds in 1985.  His role as Species Officer for Wales entailed monitoring rare birds such as red kites, black grouse and chough, advising key landowners such as the Forestry Commission and National Trust, and investigating crimes against wild birds. The latter, in particular, brought him to the attention of the media and, threatened by a desk-bound management job in 1998, he left the RSPB to work in television and radio.

The following is his message of support for those of us opposed to Scottish Power’s plan to build 25 colossal turbines on Mynydd Mynyllod.

Mynydd Mynyllod is a wonderful piece of upland and when I walked the site regularly in the 1980s, it supported breeding snipe, skylark and even a pair of merlin.

At present I am waging a media war against windfarms and the Welsh Assembly Government’s idiotic so-called green energy policies. They are blindly following an edict to construct an increasing number of windfarms all across Wales, thus robbing us of one of our few remaining natural resources, our wonderful countryside. Having been raped of our coal, iron and water, we are once again being targetted and I, for one, have had enough.

I will continue to grasp every opportunity to attack large-scale windfarm developments and I support other protestors whenever I can.

I wish STEMM all the best with their endeavours to keep wind turbines off Mynydd Mynyllod. I feel strongly that future generations will judge us harshly for allowing our beautiful countryside to be desecrated for the financial benefit of a few large companies and a handful of landowners.

Iolo Williams

The information below, giving details of the situation (up to October 2011) for all onshore wind turbine development in the area, has been kindly forwarded onto us by the Cynghrair Hiraethog Alliance which is currently fighting plans to erect  32 turbines at Clocaenog Forest, near Ruthin.

1. WERN DDU, Denbs (Tegni) – 4 turbines of 2MW. Operational.

2. CWM PENANNER, Conwy (Energie Kontor) – 2 turbines of 2.5MW, 100m high. No application yet.

3. BRAICH DDU, Gwynedd (Cornwall Light & Power) – 3 turbines of 1.5MW, 91m high. Operational.

4. TIR MOSTYN/FOEL GOCH, Denbs (Gamesa/HG Capital) – 25 turbines of 0.85MW. Operational. 

5. HAFOTTY UCHA 1, Conwy (Tegni) – 1 turbine of 0.6MW, 61m high. Operational.  Also, HAFOTTY UCHA 2 and 3, Conwy (Tegni) – 3 turbines of 0.85MW, 70m high. Operational.

6. BRENIG, Denbs (Brenig Wind/Windpower Wales) – 16 turbines of 2.5MW, 100m high. Consented.

7. DERWYDD BACH, Denbs (Tegni) – 10 turbines of 2.3MW, 120.5m high. Consented.

8. CLOCAENOG FOREST (RWE npower renewables) – 32 turbines of 3 MW. Application to IPC expected Summer 2012.  This link is from the Welsh Assembly’s TAN8 document and shows the area covered.  http://wales.gov.uk/docs/desh/publications/050701planningtan8map2en.pdf 

9. NANT BACH ex Mwdwl Eithin, Conwy (Nuon Renewables) –11 turbines of 2.5MW, 100m high. Consented.

10. MOEL MAELOGAN, Conwy (Cwmni Gwynt Teg/; Ail Wynt Cyf). 12 turbines of 15.6MW. Operational. 

11. LLYS DYMPER, Conwy (Windpower Wales) – 17 turbines of 2.3-3MW. Height 126m. Application withdrawn Oct 2011 – further developments awaited.

12. MYNYDD MYNYLLOD, DCC/Gwynedd (ScottishPower Renewables) – 25 turbines with total generating capacity of up to 75MW. Height 145m.

This gives a total in this area alone of 161 wind turbines either currently in place, approved and/or planned, with a potential generating capacity of 369MW. 

In 2005 the Welsh Assembly earmarked seven Strategic Search Areas (SSAs) in Wales under TAN8 in order to try to meet their target for renewable energy which was to deliver four terawatt hours per year of electricity by the end of 2010 (it actually produced three) and seven terawatt hours by 2020.   The idea of the SSAs was that for efficiency and environmental reasons, as well as others, large scale (over 25MW) onshore wind developments should be concentrated into those particular areas.  Our area of North East Wales contains Clocaenog Forest, which is an SSA, an aspect that is being fought by the local opposition group.  Under TAN8 this site’s target was to produce 140MW.  It can be seen, however, that the NE Wales area could, in fact, be producing an additional 229MW from all the other turbines, including the LARGE SCALE wind farm planned for Mynydd Mynyllod, which is NOT within one of the TAN8 SSAs.  It would be difficult in the future, if these turbines were all approved, to move around this glorious countryside without seeing industrialisation, which wind farms, in reality, represent as they bring with them: power lines, service roads, sub stations and so on.

It is also important to focus on the words ‘could’ and ‘potential’ as in November Friends of the Earth Cymru took the Welsh Government to task for missing its renewable energy targets by what they called ‘an embarrassing margin’.  The response by a Welsh Assembly spokeswoman was interesting as she said that while the drop was “disappointing”, fluctuating weather conditions had a “major influence” on the generating efficiency of renewable stations.  “….weather conditions are a major influence on the generating efficiency of renewable stations and we appreciate that the average level of rainfall and wind speed will fluctuate from year to year and will affect the total generation figures.”  Yes, and when we need it most, during those winter weeks when high pressure brings freezing cold temperatures and snow, what happens?  The wind ceases to blow.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1345439/Customers-face-huge-wind-farms-dont-work-cold.html#ixzz1ffZohRwY

As Prince Philip famously said recently when talking to the Managing Director of a turbine company who claimed that onshore wind turbines are one of the most cost effective forms of renewable energy, “You don’t believe in fairy tales do you?”