Why is our government using our money to destroy our landscape?

Published on Wednesday 10 December 2008 20:13

Your report, "Scotland 'will have to treble number of wind turbines'" (9 December) confirms that the Scottish Government's energy policy is shaping up to be a costly disaster.

Who would have thought our own government using our own money would encourage investment in an energy source that has the lowest load factor, the shortest economic life and the highest new build generation costs, is the furthest from users and is required to occupy the greatest extent of our beautiful countryside.

This is the reality of wind farm development; it is unreliable and expensive and, with a further 2,000 substantially larger units required, our government is now the major threat to Scotland's landscape and economic viability .

ALAN J BLACK

Camus Avenue

Edinburgh

Jenny Haworth states that to attain Scotland's target of 50 per cent renewable electricity by 2020, "the current 1.3GW output from wind farms in Scotland will have to increase to 6.6GW". Assuming her figures are correct, then with the known costs of wind turbines running at 2.5 million per installed MW, with a 25 per cent average load factor and about 2.2 million households in Scotland it is easy to calculate that by 2020 the average Scottish householder can expect to have had to pay 30,000 to the developers of these Scottish wind farms.

This amount will be extracted in the form of increased surcharges on electricity bills and increased taxes and prices on the goods and services provided. All of this is in addition to what householders would normally have paid for the electricity provided from traditional power stations.

When is Alex Salmond going to come clean and explain these extra costs to the people he expects to vote for him?

WILLIAM OXENHAM

Easter Currie Place

Edinburgh

Economic reality will eventually overcome the quasi-religious madness of throwing ruinous amounts of money at one of the most intermittent and inefficient technologies known to man. Wind power has been around since well before the 7th century but the same old problems remain.

For too long we have sought to appease the environmental bandwagon, largely because of the vitriolic attacks on anyone who dares question its beliefs. However, one day we will undoubtedly look back at this period of waste and stagnation in disbelief.

GEORGE ASHE

North St David Street

Edinburgh

Your call for reform of the planning system (editorial, 6 December) is short-sighted and potentially damaging.

At a time when current laws have proved inadequate to protect a major site of special scientific interest from the Trump housing development, or to save listed buildings from demolition threatened by Caltongate, or to avoid endangering Edinburgh's world heritage status, the worst possible response would be to weaken further the few constraints that exist.

We are fortunate to have escaped the ravages of unbridled development from the 1960s and 70s. As a result, Edinburgh is widely acclaimed as offering some of the best quality of life in the UK and our countryside is comparatively unspoilt. These are important keys to our economic success as they are reasons people want to live and work here.

Developments need careful control. The current planning protections should be enforced not undermined.

ROBIN HODGE

High Street

Edinburgh