Visual Amenity Objections
Below is a list of objection paragraphs relating to the loss of visual amenity. They are not in any particular order. Either cut and paste the relevant objections into your letter, or use them as seeds for your own ideas.
* Loss of visual amenity has been ignored by wind farm developers. This large wind turbine will have a dominant, intrusive and oppressive visual impact on Wrightington and the surrounding landscape.
* I believe that the impact of a wind turbine of this a magnitude will impact detrimentally to the visual amenity of the area for those who live here and visit.
* I am a resident in this area/ I am a regular walker in this area. I feel that the proposed height of this wind turbine is disproportionate to the surrounding landscape and will have a detrimental impact on our visual amenities and the wildlife of the area. As a council I understand you are looking at a Draft Sustainable Energy Strategy and would urge you to consider more visually sympathetic forms of renewable energy that have superior CO2 returns.
* I consider that with every large wind turbine development we lose a little more of our visual amenity. They are tall alien columnar constructions which are uncharacteristic of the area and interfere with long distance views. The construction of them can impact on surrounding woodland, grassland and water courses with serious consequences to wildlife.
* The visual assessments that have been carried out by the developer have been done to advantage their case and I would ask all the planners and planning committee to visit the site to view it themselves. The report is potentially misleading. When standing at the top of Harrock Hill you have a view to Blackpool in the north west and the lake district to the north, then over to the Pennines in the north east and east, followed by the town of Wigan to the south west with Derbyshire in the background, then continuing to the south we have Beacon park, moving on to the south west there is a magnificent view across Liverpool and the Mersey out to the hills of Snowdonia leading back to the west where we have the Lancashire planes with Southport in the foreground and the Irish sea behind.
This wind turbine will be seen from all these places, as it will stand many meters above the top of Harrock Hill. How can they say it will not have a major impact on the landscape?
*The character of the area would be altered permanently by the construction of a wind turbine hence changing the Local Distinctiveness of the area without in any way enhancing the character of the landscape.
* Wrightington is an area with characteristics of low hills, ancient countryside, long distance views from high points, ancient woodlands and a high proportion of pasture providing a continuous green landscape. The introduction of a tall columnar construction would have a seriously detrimental effect on this landscape and would conflict with the aims of the West Lancashire Replacement Local Plan – Supplementary Planning Guidance – Updated 2007.
* I believe that a wind turbine is an alien structure in the proposed area and will interfere with long distance views. This is particularly significant because of its eye-catching movement.
* There are panoramic views in all directions from Harrock Hill extending for many miles: the Pennines to the east, Blackpool and the Lake District to the north, Liverpool and the mountains of North Wales to the south and the Lancashire Plain to the west. Consequently the turbine, extending above the top of the hill, will be visible from many locations.
* Wind turbines would almost inevitably have a detrimental impact on landscape character and mitigation, in the case of large turbines, would be hard to put in place.”
* West Lancs Borough Councils Local Plan encourages renewable energy in principle and supports the development of facilities for harnessing renewable energy sources including wind power, which it advises needs to be carefully located, to avoid problems of visual intrusion and loss of amenity.
* The turbine would be of greatly significant size relative to the surrounding landscape…The magnitude of change to landscape character would be substantial.
* The proposed turbine would be a conspicuous and assertive feature in many views from this landscape character area.
* There are only a few buildings on the skyline which interrupt a significantly uncluttered landscape, which is sensitive to the type of highly visible, vertical and moving development that the turbine would represent.
* As a conspicuous 90m high moving object, it would be noticeably intrusive overlooking the landscape of undulating farm land.
* In this kind of environment the turbine would have a very significant adverse impact because of its 90m high vertical and industrial appearance, compounded by movement of the blades.
* There are long views across rolling pasture and arable fields and the turbine would be the only contrasting vertical feature in a broad aspect.
There are public rights of way, bridleways and byways in all the LCAs (landscape character areas) that are used frequently by local residents and from further afield; and these provide more intimate views and long views of the countryside which because of its very varied nature, provides a wide range of experiences. That is enhanced by the remarkably open and largely unspoilt nature of most of the farmland and these are recognised by West Lancashire Replacement Local Plan Supplementary Planning Guidance – updated 2007 as being Areas of Landscape History - County Importance and that its qualities weigh significantly in favour of its conservation.
* The turbine would become a defining element in the landscape over a considerable distance. The effect would not be uniform, but it would be a noticeable feature for a large area.
* The proposal is sited in the Green Belt. It would be a prominent feature in the Green Belt and would conflict with the objective (NPPF para 81) of planning positively for opportunities to retain and enhance landscapes and visual amenity. The impact of the proposal in the Green Belt would be inappropriate and harmful to it.
Wrightington Residents Against Turbines (The WRAT Pack)