People come to Cumbria for its wild and unspoilt landscape. Cumbria’s competitive advantage remains its rural beauty, and we must recognise that it is the protection of our landscape that will protect our economy. The construction of wind turbines in inappropriate locations will have a deep and long-term negative impact on our local economy, marring the landscape tourists come to see, and jeopardising the billion pounds the tourism industry annually brings to the area.
I am also deeply sympathetic to community concerns – this is their landscape, their community, and they should be able to determine, except in the most extreme circumstances, the future and nature of their locality. My hope, therefore, is that we can as Cumbrians continue to harness the strength of our opposition and highlight the importance of our landscape to our economy and our lives, and stop inappropriate developments.
Over two hundred people from all over Cumbria and south-west Scotland came together on Saturday 4th June at the Solway Moss near Longtown in a demonstration against inappropriate wind farms organised and led by Rory. The rally, which brought together campaigners from Longtown, Bewcastle, Sleagill and Reagill, Berrier Hill, Cumwhinton, Rosley, Great Broughton and Girvan, highlighted […]
My opposition to wind-turbines used to be merely theoretical. I understood that they were an inefficient way of generating energy and that companies pushed them into inappropriate places, against the wishes of communities, because of extravagant subsidies. But Britain desperately needed clean energy. I knew struggling farmers, for whom turbines could bring enough income to […]
Rory walked from Reagill to Wintertarn, on Saturday 12th February, to visit proposed windfarm sites with CARST (Communities Against Reagill & Sleagill Turbines). Rory described it as a “wonderfully unique landscape, wholly inappropriate for wind turbines.” The walk organised by CARST showed local MP Rory the 50-foot high anemometer mast, recently erected at Reagill by […]
Rory has applauded today’s announcement by the Chancellor George Osborne of an investment of £200 million for the development of offshore wind. Mr. Osborne has also pledged funds towards manufacturing infrastructure at port sites, in a clear sign that the Coalition Government is moving away from investment in on-shore wind turbines, which was subject to […]