Wind of change

Published on Monday 19 July 2010 16:27

Congratulations to John McTernan for so comprehensively setting out the case for nuclear power and against so-called renewable generation (Comment, 19 July).

Since energy is a reserved matter, there seems to be no reason why EDF should not apply now for permission to build Hunterston C to call the SNP government's bluff. There would be no rational grounds on which the SNP could refuse this; all the evidence is that, without such a replacement, Scotland is heading for blackouts.

In any case, there is the possibility that the SNP will cease to govern Scotland next May and the application might succeed.

STEUART CAMPBELL

Dovecot Loan

Edinburgh

If THE wind doesn't blow and the turbines won't go, the landowner's purse will continue to grow. This is only one of the sad lessons deriving from the "revelation" that wind farms have been producing less than half of the expected amount of power we were promised.

That they have failed so miserably will not come as a revelation or surprise to anyone frequently perusing the Neta website.

Politicians continue to ignore the persistent failure of this aspect of renewable energy production and landowners continue to receive huge amounts of rent while the turbines stand idle.

The only thing worth a smile in this unfolding farce is the verbal and moral gymnastics of Friends of the Earth, WWF and the Green Party. The wind is down and the game is up: wind farms and their supporters should follow the example of the Energy Minister, Jim Mather, and bow out.

RON GREER

Blair Atholl

Perthshire

Media reports over the weekend revealed two significant facts. Firstly, that our current electricity bills include an annual cost of 84 for environmental levies - including contributions to the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target and hidden subsidies to pay for wind turbines. These costs are set to double over the next few years.

Secondly, we learn that Scotland's wind turbines are producing even less electricity than anticipated from the already woeful, generally accepted 30 per cent of their design capacity.

For the first few months of this year they have averaged a production capacity of only 17 per cent.

This is a travesty which we are all paying to subsidise and enrich developers and landowners.

It is to be hoped that politicians are taking note of this and demanding that their officials develop a more credible energy policy to prevent this from regressing to a third world country.

(DR) GM LINDSAY

Whinfield Gardens

Kinross