People often ask me to explain ’ What have I got against wind turbines?’
Here are a few of their problems:
1 They exacerbate flooding due to the massive concrete bases being built on our hills for turbines which cause faster run-off during periods of heavy rain. Old wind farms, such as at Llandinam, have passed their sell-by date much earlier than expected and are being replaced by larger turbines, each of which requires a new concrete base. They old bases are left in the ground. As you will appreciate, the mountain will eventually be covered in concrete, a highly-polluting process itself, and this will increase flooding many-fold.
2 Proximity to wind turbines can cause high blood pressure, tinitus, sleeplessness and many other health problems, due to infra-sound – there is now much evidence of this in many countries, with massed chronic examples in the US, Canada and Australia. (many reports, including Wind Turbines Make Waves: Why Some Residents Near Wind Turbines Become Ill, contained in the Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society, 30th September 2011; Wind Turbine Syndrome, A Report on a Natural Experiment, by Dr Nina Pierpont, published 2009 by K-Selected Books, Santa Fe). The UK government insists on using a system called ETSU-97 for monitoring wind noise, but this is 16 years old, produced when turbines were far smaller, and there is much more sensitive equipment available now, which they refuse to use because it will reveal the shortcomings of the industry. Unbelievably, the Health & Safety Executive are kept well away from wind turbine developments, when every other form of activity in the UK is subject to their investigations, even harmless bookshops in Brecon.
3 Despite what government and the wind industry say, turbines devalue property and in many cases destroy any chance of selling the property – there is a lot of evidence from estate agents all over the UK.
4 In extreme cases people such as Jane and Julian Davis in Lincolnshire even had to abandon their property. There is no provision for compensation for such people.
5 Wind energy destroys local jobs: according to a report commissioned by the Scottish government 3.7 jobs in the UK are lost for every 1 wind one produced (Verso Economics: The Economic Impact of Renewable Energy Policy in Scotland and the UK 2011).
6 The Mid-Wales economy relies heavily on tourism, and many businesses will have to close and the economy devastated if hundreds more turbines are erected. It is completely unfair that Powys should bear such massive numbers of these alien, out-of-scale objects and have to pay some £3m to fight it through the public inquiries – that is why we have the highest hike in council tax in the country. See the PCC Red Kite newsletter.
7 Industrialising much of our finest natural landscapes that are vital for people’s wellbeing, tourism, etc, is totally unacceptable in a civilised society. We need natural landscapes unadulterated by monstrous metal structures, for our well-being.
8 Introducing gridlock into Mid-Wales highways over 7 years or more as is forecast by Powys CC (comment by Dale Boyington, Director of Highways, PCC in 2012) if current proposals go ahead will inevitably destroy much of the fabric of our society and culture, but this matters not a jot to those in Cardiff or Westminster.
9 This is leading to the disintegration of local communities, many of whom will be virtually imprisoned when surrounded by monstrous metal turbines nearly 500 feet high.
10 Billions of our money going abroad to foreign energy corporations (who form some 70% of our energy companies), furthering problems with our balance of payments.
11 Energy bills are rising alarmingly, mainly because of subsidies to wind energy, thus creating fuel poverty for so many in Mid-Wales, with consequent increase in deaths in winter.
12 Turbines kill birds (particular raptors) and bats, also spook many domestic animals. Horses are especially vulnerable.
13 Turbine bases destroy vast areas of peat blanket, the British equivalent of a rain forest and thus releasing vast tonnes of CO2.
14 The intermittency of wind energy makes it a pretty useless source of energy, leading to brown-outs, grid destabilisation and costly backup from traditional power stations which are forced to operate at inefficient levels, and thus creating more CO2 than if they operated normally without the turbines.
15 People regard nuclear power as being dangerous, yet more people have died from wind turbine accidents over the last five years than from nuclear ones. During the 5 years up to December 2011 there were 1,500 accidents and incidents on UK wind farms, with four deaths, according to Renewable UK.
16 During periods when the grid cannot cope with input from wind turbines the latter are told to shut down, yet are given hundreds of thousands of pounds for not producing any power.
17 Wind turbines each have a magnet as part of their structure, and some of the content for this comes from rare earth minerals mined exclusively in China. This process is dirty and dangerous, with waste products, including radioactive thorium apparently allowed to leech into the waterways. See http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/asia/july-dec09/china_12-14.html
This book explains much of the above in greater detail:
The Wind Farm Scam by Dr John Etherington, £9.99 Stacey International publishers
David Bellamy
Watch this excellent film by Godfrey Bloom explaining the economics and the threats to our energy supply that will result from our government’s obsession with wind energy
Mynydd y Gwair, Watercolour by David Bellamy
There is a proposal to built a large Wind Turbine development on this beautiful unspoilt common land, with views across Swansea Bay, the Bristol Channel and the Decon coastline. The local people will loose their peace and serenity, and walkers will loose the sense of isolation and solitude so vital to restore well-being in many of us. And all for the sake of a small supply of intermittent electricity
We are both very concerned about the impact of proposed Wind Turbine developments in the Welsh Uplands. Numerous developments of large Wind Turbines are currently being proposed for many of the country’s most beautiful hilltops. Sixteen wind turbine developments already exist in Wales creating an unacceptable visual intrustion. Some turbine developments are currently being built such as Cefn Croes in Ceredigion where huge tracts of land are being devastated in order to install access roads. Visit Cefn Croes website to see the damage. All this destruction in order to produce a very small and intermittent supply of electricity.
‘We are both working to bring about more awareness of the issues’
The two David Bellamys have met on two protest marches against wind turbine developments in Wales.
David and Jenny passionately believe in the principle of renewable energy but wind turbines are the least reliable or productive, and the most intrusive of all the renewable options.
Far from being a ‘green’ option, there are many arguments against them. For example – here are just two of the many facts
1. Their unreliability means that conventional coal, gas or oil fired power stations will still have to be kept running on standby in case the wind stops blowing, or blows too fast, thus any perceived saving of carbon emissions is a myth.
2. 1,000 tons of concrete is required to install each individual turbine. Concrete production is the second most polluting industrial process in the world.
Please take the time to educate yourself on this subject as we are being told by our government that this is the solution to reducing our carbon emissions but wind tubines cannot help to solve the problem of global warming in fact they may even be adding to it.
The only people to benefit from this industrialisation of our countryside will be the developers.
Country Guardian
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I have never read so much complete and utter misleading rubbish about wind turbines. I won’t share or like this page because your an embarrassment to the UK. I have printed it off though because some of your claims are a joke.
Please come to my office, I will supply you with tea, coffee and biscuits and we can have a chat a wind turbines and if your blinkers are not fixed on permanently then you will see the that what your saying is nonsense.
Kind regards,
Jon Roche.
Hi Jon,
Thank you for your comment on what you call my ‘misleading rubbish on wind turbines’ and for your kind invitation to join you for tea and biscuits. I’d love to take up your offer, but I believe you live quite some distance from Mid-Wales, so it’s not really practical for me.
I can fully understand your stance on this, as I believe you work in conjunction with the wind industry, so you would no doubt have a vested interest in this issue? Perhaps you would be kind enough to point out any aspects of my statement with which you disagree? I’m always keen to hear the views of others.
Kind regards,
David Bellamy
Artist & Author
Well said, Mr Bellamy. I do believe that the world is starting to wake up to how it’s been conned. I believed you when you first spoke up about ‘global warming’ and ‘climate change’, and that belief hasn’t wavered. I am so sorry that we lost your enthusiasm and expertise on mainstream television because the politically-correct controllers didn’t like or understand what you were saying.
I remember weatherman Bill Giles saying, back in 1996, that ‘France would be ‘uninhabitable’ within twenty years’ due to global warming. I didn’t forget this, so I waited my time and last year, with just one year to go, I wrote to him to remind him of what he had said, and to point out that, as I currently live in France and that France is showing no sign whatsoever that it is even remotely becoming uninhabitable, did he stand by what he had said? I received such a load of nonsense in reply that I actual felt sorry for him because he is still trying to convince himself.
I hope that one day soon, those who denigrated you will acknowledge that you were right all along.
In Ireland they have destroyed the blanket bogs with concrete and steel wind farm bases. Now there is more flooding. Can never understand how environmentalists can support wind farms. Thank you David for taking a stance on this issue.
Owen
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Dear Mr. Bellamy.
Thank you so much for taking a stand with this issue.
Here in Ireland there are so many irregularities with the Wind Industry that it’s leaving people reeling. Our mountain bogs are being stripped and our low-land flooding is increasing. People have had to leave their homes because of infrasound issues and put up with the accusation that they are a little ‘odd’ for doing so! The same infrasound used in torture that so many humanitarians openly speak out against. Our planning department is filling up with former wind industry executives and the people who make a stand are being mocked.
Rural Ireland is in a quiet turmoil, communities are being torn apart with the introduction of this industry. Plans to introduce even more wind onto an already wind-burdened system carries a risk of black outs that can go on for weeks, indeed some areas have already experienced this in recent weeks, although ‘storms’ are being blamed for it. ‘Storms’ that we used to call ‘a bit of a breeze’.
Thank you again for going public with your concerns, you have lent more encouragement that you might know.
Fiona.
P.S. If you’re ever in Ireland we can offer you a lot more than tea and biscuits and we keep the blinkers for the horses and others who like to wear them.
Hello Gwen,
As so often happens, I don’t know whether your email is really addressed to me (the artist and author) or the botanist of the same name. We both campaign against wind farms, sometimes together, and it is disgraceful the way in which the BBC have treated him because of this.
I believe Jenny has forwarded your email to him, as we assume he is the one you are trying to contact. Here in Wales we have a truly horrific threat from massed turbines all across the country, so I really do sympathise with you. It is probably one of the most corrupt industries that has ever existed – the latest exposition shows that they have been paid almost £28 million in the last year NOT to produce wind energy! It’s hardly believable.
Perhaps the best way Jenny and I can help you is writing in support, so please keep us informed.
I wish you well with your campaign,
Kind regards,
David
I have been truly worried for years about the amount of concrete being poured into our hills to support these wind farms. (An olympic swimming pool size of concrete for each turbine). Of course it will mean that water will simply run off our hills instead of being absorbed by them, which will lead to more flooding…..developers MUST realize this….but when are they going to stop?? When their houses are flooded maybe??? This concrete will never be removed!!
http://www.renewableuk.com/en/renewable-energy/wind-energy/uk-wind-energy-database/index.cfm/maplarge/1
This gives you some idea of the amount of land in this country taken up by wind farms. Absolutely staggering.
Thank you for your comment Barbara. You are so right about this. We are still battling against this pernicious plague and we will never give up. The more you investigate the more corruption you discover. Keep spreading the word
As the beauty of our environment diminishes so does our quality of life.
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Well said David. Wind farms are an ecological disaster. They kill bees, insects, bats and birds in the millions. CO2 is not a pollutant. The cyclical warming of the planet is natural and causes an increase in CO2 (plant food) not the other way around.
Thank you for speaking out against wind farms! In Scotland, the wind farm industry is destroying the natural environment at a phenomenal rate. Millions of trees have been cut down for this so-called ‘green’ energy. Not only that but most turbines are built on peat. Currently, the largest wind turbines in the UK are being proposed which reach 200 metres high. The reinforced cement bases for these monsters are 28 metres in diameter and can be several metres deep. Each turbine has a track leading to it which is 7 metres wide at the base. Then there are crane bases, blade lay down areas, buildings, ditches and huge pits blasted for hardcore. Wind farms are an ecological nightmare and the UK taxpayer is funding it. We even pay for energy companies to stop producing wind energy via ‘constaints payments’. White Lee Wind Farm, near Glasgow, has been paid £69,689,227.00 in total to constrain 1,009,557 MWh of electricity (figures up to 26 August 2019). I loathe to use the term scam but there is no other word that adequately sums up this vile industry. Those campaigning on green issues conveniently ignore the devastation including bird and bat deaths, pollution to underground water supplies, the cost (a quarter of Scottish households are in fuel poverty) and the loss of habita including wild land.
Dear David,
thank you for helping to expose this corrupt industry.
I recently visited Tokyo and observed their amazingly efficient wind turbines which are about the size of a wardrobe and power whole buildings. The faster the wind blows the more electricity is generated. They are brilliantly designed:- small, lightweight, reliable, efficient, no need to be on a hill or out at sea, no need for concrete, and don’t need to be switched off in high winds. While here in the UK we have useless gigantic monsters from Mars. How many watts of electricity have they generated? Where are the figures from Walney – Moray – Sea Green – Forewind – E-ON and all the rest? The only figures I’ve seen are incomprehensible.
It’s a scam – the Government has given these companies contracts and the CEO’s are making billions from this corrupt process. I only just learnt that the wind farms off the East coast give off a polluting gas and the population of Worthing are often officially told to stay indoors. Wind turbines should be full of rows of small individual windmills that spin in the lightest of winds, They should be low maintenance. They should be at ground level and no bigger than a wardrobe, so that an engineer can install and maintain them with ease. I mean it’s obvious innit? Mr. N. Murray
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Hi David, I have been plagued with the torture and 24 hour a day torment from Low Frequency Noise that I believe is being emitted from wind turbines just offshore in Brighton and Hove where I live. I have moved home 4 times in 2 years around the South East Coast, trying to escape it, but now realise there is no escape from the noise. It has made me very ill in many ways and I suffer peripheral neuropathy now – I believe caused by the vibrations of the infrasound in a previous property. Have you any advice at all? Thank you. Jo