FUNDAMENTAL problems have not been resolved, say opponents to the Frodsham and Helsby marshes wind farm following Peel Energy’s formal application.
Peel has proposed 20 turbines, each standing 125m tall, with 13 of the giant power generators at the Helsby end of the marshes and seven toward Frodsham.
Action group Residents Against the Wind farm (RAW) chairman Roger Young said: “They still haven’t addressed the fundamental problem of the separation distance between the marshes and people which makes us nervous about the noise.
“The further away they are the lower the risk of any problems.
“The big turbines proposed start turning when the wind is 3.5 m/s but we only have an average wind speed of 7.1 m/s and they don’t reach their maximum power until 15 m/s.
“People in the community have lived in Frodsham for years and we know it’s a place that doesn’t have naturally high winds.
“They haven’t done anything on the impact of house prices, there’s nothing we can do about that if they get away with it.
“It will have such a big impact on the people of Frodsham and Helsby, there is evidence that shows people close to turbines, within site of them, their house prices can be affected by 30%, 40% and even 50%.
“There will be problems with TV reception, Peel agree it’s going to be affected, and they haven’t solved the problems with the airport radar.
“They say they will and they can, but they haven’t yet. There’s a difference between thinking and proving.
“The benefits are completely outweighed by the negatives.”
New access tracks will be built on the marshes with other roads being upgraded, a single storey substation with be built as well as crane pads, a temporary site compound and work to the Manchester Ship Canal.
A decision on the plans by the Department of Energy and Climate Change is expected in July 2011 and, if given the green light, construction could start in 2013 with an 18-24 month build expected.
About 50 jobs will be created and a community fund will be established to benefit residents.
Homeowners in Frodsham, Helsby and Elton to see the new proposal and speak to the developer’s experts.
Stephen Snowdon, Peel Energy development manager, said: “There will be a range of new information at the exhibitions including 25 images showing how the wind farm appears from different viewpoints in the surrounding area and five images showing the potential cumulative impact with other consented and proposed developments.
“We appreciate it can be difficult to imagine what the wind farm would look like when it is operational and hope as many people as possible will come along to see the photomontages and find out more about our final proposals.”
The exhibitions will take place on Saturday, March 6, from 10am-3pm at Helsby Community Centre; Wednesday, March 10, from 2pm-7pm, at Main Street Church, Frodsham, and on Thursday, March 11, from 10am-3pm, at Elton Community Centre.
