The Voice of Spalding and South Holland
Campaigners are celebrating after the threat of a wind farm on their doorsteps was wiped out.
Residents in West Pinchbeck had feared that a rash of nine 125m-high turbines would be built on a parcel of land sandwiched between two nature reserves – affecting people’s health, the local wildlife and the appearance of the area.
But after a four-year battle to defeat the Delph Farm plans by Wind Ventures Ltd, the Stop West Pinchbeck Wind Farm group this month announced “We Have Won” on its website.
They were able to finally celebrate after South Holland District Council (SHDC) ruled the Wind Ventures Ltd application had run out of time for an appeal against non-determination.
The campaign group’s website broke the news with the announcement: “This means that Wind Ventures’ planning application for the Delph Wind Farm has been finally disposed of and therefore WE HAVE WON!”
One of the leading campaigners Tony Fear said: “At this moment it still seems slightly unbelievable that it has just fizzled out in this way given all the effort we have put into fighting it, but nevertheless it is genuine and absolutely final.”
The end of the line for the controversial wind farm plan followed the announcement last December that Wind Ventures Ltd had made all but two of its employees redundant and would “slowly shut down in an operational sense due to the overall wind situation not being massively positive both from an economic and planning perspective”.
It had however expressed its intention to press ahead with the Delph Farm proposal.
As well as residents, the campaign against the turbines had the backing of Pinchbeck Parish Council.
MP John Hayes had also visited the site last year to hear protesters’ objections and ecological experts had raised concerns about the effects of the turbines on the wetland reserves.
