‘Simply not suitable for wind turbines’

Mr Reid claims the inspector did not properly balance the benefits of renewable energy production against the damage the three, 320 ft high turbines would cause to people’s quality of life, to our landscape and to our listed buildings.

Let’s take a look at EK’s assessment of the turbines’ impacts and what the two planning inspectors had to say.

Both inspectors found there would be damage to: 1) the quality of life of nearby residents, 2) the setting of listed buildings and 3) the landscape.

EK’s own Residential Amenity Survey shows that five families would experience a substantial change to their living conditions. Four of these homes are working farms. EK’s survey states that the significance of the turbines’ impact on these homes would be major. In fact, EK placed these homes in the highest possible impact category.

The latest appeal decision states: “...Given that the occupiers not only reside here but work the surrounding land I consider that there would be a serious impact upon their living and working conditions from which there would be little relief...” The inspector continued, “...I consider it would become a property for which the overbearing nature of the wind turbines would make it a difficult place to reside and work without feeling constantly oppressed...”

Listed buildings are protected under the Listed Building and Conservation Act 1990. Both inspector’s found the turbines would harm the setting of Grade II*Listed Buildings.

The most recent appeal decision also placed great weight on how the turbines would harm the landscape. The harm identified was not only within the Gargrave drumlin field, but also further afield. The inspector specifically mentioned that from Malham and Sharphaw, the turbines would be seen as a discordant, vertical group within the drumlin landscape.

Both inspectors’ have been crystal clear. Here in Craven’s beautiful countryside, we live and we work and our well being and livelihood should be protected from inappropriate development.

The country’s most highly qualified planning inspectors have delivered their judgement - Brightenber Hill is not a suitable area for wind turbines.

Is EnergieKontor really willing to inflict such continual oppression and distress on our community? I look forward to Justin Reid’s reply.

Stephanie Emmett Bank Newton Car park ‘dictators’ Sir - We use the democratic process to elect our councillors only to find out that the executive and leadership of the Craven District Council carry on as if we live in a dictatorship.

The latest case is their decision to reintroduce car parking charges on some free car parks, only 18 months after, following thorough public consultation and debate, the council decided the introduction of charges would be detrimental to small businesses and local residents using the services.

Parish councils have not been informed and neither have the council taxpayers. The first time anyone became aware of the threat was in last week’s Craven Herald.

It is only recently that Craven District Council persuaded local businesses in Cross Hills (which is designated by Craven District Council as the service centre for South Craven) to form a business group which the council could work with to support and encourage the development of the service centre in Cross Hills. This group, just like the parish council, were not informed of the district council’s intentions.

It is clear the leadership of the Craven District Council wished to push their project through the council without any democratic process being followed with local businesses, parish councils or us the council tax paying public.

The only thing that has changed in 18 months is that we have more on-street car parking in Cross Hills and more through traffic.

Cars overflow from the health centre car park. Main Street has double yellow lines throughout the length of the village to ensure the huge volume of through traffic is not impeded. All the other streets in Cross Hills are narrow and lined with parked cars. So any introduction of car parking charges will force shoppers to go to Keighley or Skipton.

Is this the aim of the council leadership? If all our South Craven district councillors wish to support their communities to keep a service centre in Cross Hills they now have the opportunity to secure its future.

Roger Nicholson Park Drive Sutton-in-Craven Praise for ward staff Sir - This letter is written with truly sincere and appreciative thanks to all the doctors and nursing staff on Ward 6 at Airedale Hospital.

My husband Brian had intermittent medical problems for many years and after a very difficult few months this year, finally spent his last week in their care.

His daughter and I have the highest praise for the way they treated Brian, his visitors and our family during that sad but inevitable week.

Brian was treated with the utmost care and dignity until the last moments of his life and we will always be grateful to those special doctors and nurses for this.

Tessa Bird Water Street Earby Festival noise ‘hell’ Sir - Reading complaints about the noise from the Waterway Festival I can only say, you should live in Carleton when the Beacons Festival is on.

The village was given £800 to claim we are all deaf, but sadly in my case not so.

Night after night to 1.30am and most of Sunday, a continual boom, boom.

Luckily it was not hot so one could keep the windows shut, otherwise it would have been impossible to have stayed at home.

I hope the people who attended enjoyed it and the organisers made a fat profit, but for local residents it was hell.

Pat Smith Westwood Carleton An energy example Sir - HJ Hill in last week’s letters – “In the dark on power” – is at pains to point out that Settle Hydro was not “expected to generate enough power to service 50 domestic dwellings” as reported in the Craven Herald’s July 31 issue. The wording was the Craven Herald’s.

Our press release claims only that “during an average year it should deliver power equivalent to the consumption of 50 domestic dwellings”.

This is a standard formula for all energy producers to convey a lay person’s view of the scale of the operation.

Visitors to our site at Bridge End Mill, including schoolchildren, university groups and interested individuals learn how the electricity we generate from a derelict piece of industrial heritage is sold to the national grid, from where it is distributed via supply companies to local homes.

Our local contribution to the grid supply saves losses in transmission from central coal-fired power stations located many miles away, saving imported fossil fuels and cutting CO2 emissions.

Our website www.settlehydro.org.uk indicates how much we generate daily, monthly and annually and carbon emissions saved.

Any profit from electricity sold to the grid is distributed first to local community organisations and only after that obligation has been met, are shareholders entitled to a dividend. Our aim is to support the local community.

The project is managed by volunteers – no company cars, no bonuses, we don’t even claim expenses. We are not in the business of “misleading others and inflating expectations”.

Our current share issue, if well subscribed, will enable us to fulfil these commitments. Funds raised will be used to update the control system to increase production at low river levels, which currently adversely affects performance during the summer months.

New shareholder funds will also help us to repay part of the original loan capital, reducing the financial burden of loan repayments and interest, and making the project more profitable.

H J Hill may sneer at 20 Russell Hobbs kettles-worth of electricity, but Settle Hydro demonstrates that, if every business, community organisation or even domestic dwelling made their own proportionate effort by either reducing energy usage, generating their own or by helping others to do so, this small town could soon be well on its way to a carbon neutral and even energy self-sufficient future.

Sandy Tod Director, Settle Hydro Limited Malham Railway heritage Sir - What a superb photo of Skipton Railway Station by your photographer Stephen Garnett in the Craven Herald of August 14; a centre spread, too.

We Skiptonians are fortunate to have such a great station after the recent refurbishment, which cost more than £1.2 million.

The Victorian platform canopies have been totally renovated, with new glazing and lighting and a more appropriate colour scheme paint job for a former Midland Railway-built station; notice the stone-carved wyvern adorning the front wall.

Northern Rail have over 470 stations to look after in their franchise area. They have a station adopter scheme whereby they appoint individuals to become station adopters.

I am the adopter for Skipton Station. I am required to make a weekly visit, no set time, purely at my convenience, and monitor anything that requires attention. I can report any defects, firstly to the station supervisor or by a hotline direct to ISS Services, who note the defect and pass it on to their appropriate operatives.

Once a month I send a report to Northern’s headquarters in York; my reporting week is the first in the month. Other adopters are doing the same throughout the month.

So Northern Rail have a complete picture of what is happening on all the stations on the network.

Historically, Skipton’s first station (1847) was sited where Tesco is now, and cost £2,330. Built by Sugden-Simpson and Clarke, it was demolished in 1967.

Skipton’s present station (1876) was designed by Charles Trubshaw, built by Kirk and Evans (buildings only) for £4,572 15s 3d.

Platforms one to four and the canopies, which covered more of the platforms than at present, were built by WM Farlain of Glasgow for £11,174 6s 11d.

Platforms five and six were added in 1888, part of the scheme for the Skipton-Ilkley line, built by Mousley and Co of Bristol, costing £302,661.

In 1900 a single line from Embsay Junction to Grassington was built by William Haines Hutchinson of Mansfield for £28,892. In 1902 the line was opened for passengers, in 1932 passenger services were withdrawn and in 1969 the section between Grassington and Swinden Quarry was lifted.

In 1965 the Skipton-Ilkley line was closed. The section from Embsay Station to Embsay Junction was retained by the Embsay and Bolton Abbey Steam Railway, formerly known as Yorkshire Dales Railway.

In 1846/7 the Skipton-Colne line was built by G Boulton and Co for £67,000. The line opened in 1848 and was closed in 1970.

The lines to Carnforth, Lancaster and Carlisle followed in later years.

Peter Bewes Burnside Crescent Skipton What’s the point?

Sir - Animal Aid’s recently published report, Victims of Charity, describes how health and medical research charities have funded experiments in which, amongst other horrors, monkeys’ brains have been injected with toxic chemicals, dogs have had their hearts systematically destroyed, and mice have been dropped into water mazes. What is the point?

Years of animal-based research into cancer, dementia, heart disease and Parkinson’s has not only caused immense animal suffering but has also been a wasteful and futile quest that has failed to find cures for people.

Different species can react very differently. Drugs that are shown to be safe in animals may later prove to be dangerous in humans.

Conversely, valuable cures and treatments may be overlooked if they fail in animal tests.

Only state-of-the-art human-based research provides information that is accurate and relevant to people.

For a free information pack, including a list of medical research charities and their vivisection policies, visit www.animalaid.org.uk/go/charities or call 01732 364546.

Helen A Rose Townhead Court Settle Set Fair for the future Sir - I would like to say a big ‘well done’ to the local Fairtrade team and congratulate Skipton on being the latest Yorkshire town to achieve Fairtrade status.

Organisers led by Liz Roodhouse have worked hard over a number of months to attain this goal, which not only makes some of the world’s tastiest produce more widely available to the people of Skipton, but also helps to lift some of the poorest producers out of poverty.

I am truly proud to represent the UK’s first Fairtrade region and having been appointed as the chair of the European Parliament’s International Development committee for the next Parliament, I intend to put Fairtrade at the heart of the development agenda. Congratulations again.

Linda McAvan MEP for Yorkshire and Humber Listening and learning Sir - I was very interested in Amjad Bashir’s letter (July 24) about his first experiences at the EU Parliament, though I have to say I was not at all surprised.

As our recent election results showed, it is obvious that the support for leaving the EU is rising as more and more of us become disillusioned by the way this unpopular conglomeration is being run.

To run an election for a new president when only one candidate is allowed is ridiculous and virtually unheard of and our own David Cameron was publicly humiliated when he tried to persuade the other members that Juncker was not an appropriate leader, yet the fact that Angela Merkel reneged on her support at the last minute after persuading other members to do likewise was apparently all right.

It is also well known that the EU has not had it’s accounts verified for at least 13 years, which in itself is highly worrying.

It is only thanks to our UKIP MEPs like Mr Bashir that we will be kept informed of the dubious goings-on at the EU so we can use this knowledge when we have our own elections next, so keep on using the Craven Herald as a soapbox - we are all listening and learning.

Patricia Mason Roughaw Close Skipton