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Islanders’ thoughts on Betty Haunt Lane wind turbine app
On the evening of the planning committee making their decision on the application to erect a wind turbine at Betty Haunt Lane, we asked "Anyone taking bets on the outcome of tonight’s planning meeting about wind turbine at Betty Haunt Lane?"
Storified by On The Wight · Tue, Jan 08 2013 00:01:37
already dead and buriedKevin Barclay-Jay
It’s always No.Vix Lowthion
THWART are too well organisedKevin Barclay-Jay
peeps against it are just stupid,Terry Lem
Yes do it put them in regardless!Nicola J Henry-Mildenhall
It’ll always be a no, remember most of the councillors are dinosaurs and even the sight of any modern structure (not made larger than 2 stories high and with 4 windows) scares them.John Williams
how can we say we live on an eco land when there’s hardly anything eco about it ! Derrick McElhinney
What’s the point of going. The narrow people of the island will never let it happen. I belive that it is best for everyone to let the planning be forced through before this island stutters to a complete halt.Dan Snow
I hope it goes through, but as Kevin Barclay-Jay says THWART are too well organised. I see no-one from Eco Island has done anything publically to support this. I thought as a Community Interest Community, meant to represent the community, it should work with the Islanders who support this, and help get it through.Hermit Rock
I really think to the point more people should be going and asking the question "why not" this ecoisland needs more people to stand up to the co and give more e! If ya’ll get what I mean.Nicola J Henry-Mildenhall
We need wind turbines. How can an Island with a wind turbine industry generate such a narrow minded group that protests too much?!Andrew Cooke
all in favour of wind turbines in the right place with maximum efficiency.Becky Haydock
I would love to see loads of windturbines all over the isle Of Wight and a massive wind, tidal and wave farm out at sea powering the Island. Now pelt me with tomatoes for being so inconsiderate and insulting. ;-) xTim Charlton
The place will be full of Nimbys Darren Preston-Ward
Offshore needs wind turbines, not the Isle of Wight. The Isle of Wight is a tourist destination and an area of historic natural beauty. There is plenty of evidence showing wind turbines depress a tourism-based economy (that would be the Isle of Wight). They will also have a considerable SUBJECTIVE impact on our landscape. Some people will like it (the vocal minority) and some people will not like it.Do we need job losses? Gurit and the other turbine blade manufacturers have already given us plenty of those after a brief period of bucket and brush labour. Now they seem to ship so many people in on the Red Jet that they need to run a bus to Cowes to staff their R&D plant. Why aren’t they offering packages to these people to relocate to the Island and bring their (higher than average) incomes to the Island? Or maybe they are? Are they?Maybe if we continue to help the off-shore turbine industry deploy offshore turbines it will be less of an issue about how we MUST have ostentatious on-shore turbines. We don’t need them and last I heard the grid can’t use them due to the large amount of solar that’s already installed and generating in a hard-to-spot kind of way.Maybe we should concentrate on building skills in solar PV on the Island instead of contentious turbines?Thomas Cowley
We NEED turbines !!!Michael ‘Largey’ Large
There is a massive wind farm in the Lake District. It’s had no visible harm to tourism. Infant it had become a boom as visitors love it xAngie Bolton-Cox
Pfft there’s always one huh!Nicola J Henry-Mildenhall
Bloody Masons! They rule the Island, and even have pretend organised debates to make it look like they are on the side of the public. Everything on this island is already pre-planned like it or lump it!Kay Ounsworth
totally agree we should have some turbines….i certainly dont think they are an eyesore, and can only be a good thing for the island.Diane Cohen
Get em built before its too late!Paul Newton
If we build it……they will come!!Darren Donkersley
Future for my kids and grand kids, or burden on some dinosaurs eyes? Hmmm?!?Paul ‘Macleod’ Magee
Hope people get this worked up about fracking as that is gonna be a real threat to our beautiful island, with its history of causing earthquakes and polluting water supplies. Wind turbines and tidal power are the way forward. Lets set an example and stand up for a greener future :)Joe N Laura Mason
Bring on the turbines.. So sick of people moving to the island to retire etc then thinking they can dictate what happens here.. Don’t like it don’t move here.. Simples….Stacy Jardine
love it or leave it I say !!Paul Spirit Chaser Morgan
im an islander and whats wrong wind turbines they wont put them up to many narrow minded people around.i would have one in my back garden if it saved me money.Janique Snudden-perkins
I failed my 4th driving test because of Betty Haunt Lane. More chance of me passing that than a positive outcome on the decision of future wind turbines on the Isle.Elaine Pitt
turbines please :) , lets face it we will see a "no" but ^^ i count more for than the one against . i would sooner have a turbine next door than a nimby .Stephen Smith
i think they should put them in anyway cause…A) the people who wouldn’t come because of them are the stuck up stuck in the mud nimby’s that nobody really likes anyway.and B ) the reduction in tourism would be balanced out because we’d all have much cheaper electricity :)its WIN WIN :)Bruce Steers
What Joe said!!Dave Rudman
Denyed.. Wouldn’t surprise me.Kayleigh Richter
Oh FFS! *excuse my language*Kayleigh Richter
hey at least there were two this time , shame on them tho , pitifull example of leadership and or representation .Stephen Smith
i’m getting messages about the island being a world leader ( blade dynamics story ) yet i feel so ashamed of my council .Stephen Smith
OK, pardon my ignorance in such matters & how these processes work. How do we actually go about getting a vote "for" turbines? Was the voting just within the council itself? At school I couldn’t see much point in learning politics but now……Dave Rudman
Why do you people want turbines on-shore?Off-shore they can be bigger and have a more consistent wind to drive them.Why apart from ‘we need them!’ which is unreasoned and emotional, do people think we actually need to have turbines on-shore on the Isle of Wight, instead of off-shore, with other less intrusive generation methods installed on-shore and near to the shore?Thomas Cowley
most of the applications for the turbines to be sited on the island have been for research purposes , however why would you not want them onshore as well as offshore , onshore requires less foundation , it is easier to service , it requires less cabling , it is not an eyesore they are quite beautiful . why have city’s onshore , why have farms onshore , why have anything at all onshore ? if you followed thwarts logic 150 years ago then we would have no telephone or power network . please corect me if i am wrong people , i’m not an expert just using my brain to think of reasons on the spot and i’m always happy to be told i’m wrong if i am .Stephen Smith
Shame but by no means the end…..Whats that song again…..oh yeah………….. ‘Winds of Change’………..sooner or later the younger generation of this Island will have their say & bring this Island out of the dark ages. Its time to think of the future of this Island for our children & not about the now becasue if we dont act & change stupid attitudes of what looks nice for our Island, if re-newable energy isn’t grasped by us all soon there wont be much beauty left to admire! Selfish & narrow sighted people who are only concerned of what currently impacts thier own lives & not what impact our decisions are making for generations to come. You Nimby’s make me sick!Darren Donkersley
It’s ok having off-shore but again it will be the same people coming up with a silly cliché name that resembles TW*T whining again because on land it as a visual impact in there view over ANOB land that happens to be there back yard. and off shore no doubt it will be interfering with there sailing calendar or destroying views when there out at sea from there yachts or gym palaces or it will be a danger to navigation or some silly technicality like "the light on top of it is the wrong shade of red causing the common moth to gather in there hundreds and fly rampant round it and in turn causing several to be sucked into the cooling vents causing a short out which in-turn causes a fire and the thing to explode and land on there heads". so all in all it’s a no win on land or off shore for the island. yet the council promotes its self as "GREEN" but refuse any green energy alternatives unless it can hide behind a postbox! And where’s Eco-island in all this I thought they would be fighting the corner for alternative energy. But Until we get the dinosaurs out of county hall and vote in people with a broader view and balls to stand up against these people/nimbys and force the plans through this will continue and it’s down to us to vote in the right people. Sorry rant over!Richard Wood
Not surprised but unbelievable that these nimbys got so much power.Irene Craig
can the councillors be named that voted for and against so we can vote them out at the next election.Irene Craig
and conversely i would like to thank the two who voted yes .Stephen Smith
Last night, the Isle of Wight council’s planning committee voted seven to two to refuse (detail of who voted what below) a planning application to place a wind turbine at Betty Haunt Lane, Newport.
