LOCATION/TYPE

NEWS HOME

[ exact phrase in "" • results by date ]

[ Google-powered • results by relevance ]


Archive
RSS

Add NWW headlines to your site (click here)

Get weekly updates

WHAT TO DO
when your community is targeted

RSS

RSS feeds and more

Keep Wind Watch online and independent!

Donate via Paypal

Donate via Stripe

Selected Documents

All Documents

Research Links

Alerts

Press Releases

FAQs

Campaign Material

Photos & Graphics

Videos

Allied Groups

Wind Watch is a registered educational charity, founded in 2005.

News Watch Home

John Muir Trust celebrates judicial review victory in fight against Stronelairg windfarm 

Credit:  Bob Smith, Editor | grough | Friday 04 December 2015 | www.grough.co.uk ~~

A leading conservation charity has won a legal battle against Scottish Ministers approval of a controversial windfarm proposal.

The John Muir Trust said it was delighted that a judicial review of the decision to give the go-ahead for the Stronelairg development found in its favour.

Lord Jones today delivered his decision at the Court of Session, ‘reducing’ ministers’ consent for the windfarm in the Monadhliath Mountains, effectively reversing their approval for the Scottish and Southern Energy plans.

The trust urged the Government and Scottish Natural Heritage to designate the area as wild land. SNH had removed the area from its wild land area maps after the initial approval for the windfarm was granted.

The 67-turbine development, which would have extended over an area the size of Inverness, was given the go-ahead by the energy minister in June 2014. The John Muir Trust said 70 per cent of the Stronelairg site consists of wet peatland, Scotland’s miniature version of the rainforest, which would have faced severe disruption as a result of the excavation of 22 million cubic feet of stone from the area.

Lord Jones ruled in his decision released today that members of the public had been denied the opportunity to comment on a revised planning application for the proposed windfarm, and that Scottish Ministers did not take into account Scottish Natural Heritage’s objection in principle to any windfarm development at Stronelairg.

Due to these errors, Lord Jones reduced the Ministers’ decision to grant consent for the wind farm.

Stuart Brooks, John Muir Trust chief executive said: “This is great news for all those who love Scotland’s wild land and wish to see it protected. A financial appeal brought a tremendous level of support from over a thousand wellwishers, allowing the trust to proceed. Lord Jones has now decided the Trust’s court action was well founded.

“Due to the impact this approval had on a wild land area – which led to Scottish National Heritage removing a significant area from its wild land areas map – the trust very reluctantly took this judicial review against the government.

“Crucially, in rejecting an argument by the Scottish Ministers that the trust was not prejudiced by the minister’s decision, Lord Jones concluded that the trust was taking the action for the public good. He said: ‘The interest of any non-governmental organisation, such as the trust, is deemed sufficient. The question, therefore, is not whether the trust was prejudiced, but whether members of the public were prejudiced’.

“Lord Jones rightly identified that this case was taken and won in the public interest so the right thing for Scottish ministers to do is not to appeal this decision.

“The trust will now be asking Scottish Natural Heritage and the Scottish Government to reinstate the Stronelairg area in the wild land areas map, giving an important piece of our natural heritage – including vast swathes of peatland which help to mitigate climate change – some measure of protection.

“SSE should recognise that this was the wrong development, of the wrong size and in the wrong place. The company now has an opportunity to show that they are listening to communities and tourism bodies and to engage with others to revitalise the natural environment there rather than pursue this damaging development which would cover a footprint the size of Inverness.

“Lessons need to be learned from the lack of proper procedure and incorrect decision-making by the government.”

An SSE spokesperson said: “We are disappointed with the result of the judicial review of the consent decision for Stronelairg windfarm.

“We will now review the judgement in detail and consider our options accordingly.”

The full judgement can be read online.

Source:  Bob Smith, Editor | grough | Friday 04 December 2015 | www.grough.co.uk

This article is the work of the source indicated. Any opinions expressed in it are not necessarily those of National Wind Watch.

The copyright of this article resides with the author or publisher indicated. As part of its noncommercial educational effort to present the environmental, social, scientific, and economic issues of large-scale wind power development to a global audience seeking such information, National Wind Watch endeavors to observe “fair use” as provided for in section 107 of U.S. Copyright Law and similar “fair dealing” provisions of the copyright laws of other nations. Send requests to excerpt, general inquiries, and comments via e-mail.

Wind Watch relies entirely
on User Funding
   Donate via Paypal
(via Paypal)
Donate via Stripe
(via Stripe)

Share:

e-mail X FB LI TG TG Share


News Watch Home

Get the Facts
CONTACT DONATE PRIVACY ABOUT SEARCH
© National Wind Watch, Inc.
Use of copyrighted material adheres to Fair Use.
"Wind Watch" is a registered trademark.

 Follow:

Wind Watch on X Wind Watch on Facebook

Wind Watch on Linked In Wind Watch on Mastodon