Bellamy to join windfarm protest

Friday 6th March 2009, 2:29PM GMT.

windfarmBroadcaster and author David Bellamy OBE will join villagers fighting plans for a windfarm near Market Drayton at a major protest march this weekend.

He is due to join members of the Vortex (Veto on Rural Turbine Expansion) action group when they protest against plans to site a wind farm in Poplar Lane, near Norton in Hales.

The plans for six 110m turbines for energy firm Nuon Renewables were refused by North Shropshire District Council in September last year at a public meeting where more than 300 protesters turned out.

Nuon launched an appeal against the decision and a hearing is due to take place in May in front of a planning inspector.

Campaigners say the protest walk is a way of raising awareness ahead of the hearing and also a bid to help the group raise the cash to pay for a team of experts and a solicitor.

Terry May, Vortex member, said she hoped to see hundreds of people turn out for the walk which starts at Knighton, near Market Drayton, at 2pm on Sunday.

She said Mr Bellamy had contacted the group to lend his support to the cause. “He’s going to come to the White Lion pub in Knighton and lead us on a walk,” she said.

“It’s a country nature walk and he will talk to us about the nature of the area and obviously he’s against these turbines, and it’s to raise awareness that the appeal is coming up.”


  1. 1
    Jake

    this man is a menace with his insane views on climate and such, i wish the nimbys would back off, we desperately need more wind energy in shropshire

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  2. 2
    Danny Champing

    stay out of our local issues, i like wind

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  3. 3
    Tory Boy

    WE WOULD BAN WIND TURBINES IN SHROPSHIRE, BECAUSE THEY ARE UGLY, WE NEED GREEN STUFF BUT IN MODERATION, AND NOT HERE, PUT THEM AT SEE OR IN WALES BUT THEY ARE ARE WASTE OF TIME, WHAT WE NEED IS NUCLEAR TO BE GREEN AND GIVE US MORE WEAPONS, THE LOONY LEFT LOVE WIND TURBINES BUT THEY ARE SUBSIDISED WITH MY TAXES SO I HATE THEM AND THEY RUIN THE VIEW, LETS STOP THIS DEVELOPMENT NOW AND KEEP THINGS LIKE THEY USED TO BE IN THE 50′S

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  4. 4
    sylvia

    These turbines are no more of a blot on the landscape as the current electric pylons,in fact less and we must accept them if we are to be independent of foreign power suppliers.

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  5. 5
    STEPHEN MOSS

    Having been involved in trying to prevent a mobile phone mast on the southern limit of Norton in Hales parish.The system is stacked against those who object to this sort of development wether it be masts or wind farms.
    There is little or no consideration for those whose lives could be blighted.
    My thoughts are with those who would like a more thoughtful method of development.
    I will be there with you tomorrow

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  6. 6
    Sara

    this bearded clown is clearly sponsored by Esso, if you dont like wind turbines, then turn off the lights, because that’s how you get electric in this day and age, i would love to cut all these people in vortex off, and then put in for a nuclear waste dump, ‘in their back yard’ and if they really cared they would put their money where their mouths are and all instll £20,000 worth of photovoltic solar panels on their roofs, that would negate the need for the turbines,

    so what will it be then vortex nimbys, nuclear dump or expensive home improvements

    you decide

    because the lights will go out soon

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  7. 7
    Labour boy

    i suspect VORTEX is a grouping of middle class people who are concerned about their house prices??????????????????????????

    Maybe im being cynical, maybe im wrong but i doubt they know much about power generation

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  8. 8
    james avery

    theres enough wind in the UK TO MEET OUR ENERGY NEEDS 8 TIMES OVER!!!! yet no one wants it?
    madness…

    can you imagine the saudis sat on oil, the polish sat on coal, the aussies sat on minerals, the south aficans sat on gems, the finnish with unlimited forest residues, can you imagine any of these saying, no no we dont want that, we dont like the look of refineries, pipleines etc, they would jump on the chance to grow rich, we are bonkers in this nation, to save the view we’ll let the lights go out, we deserve to be a third world country and thats what we’ll be if these anti green energy luddites get their way

    Report abuse

  9. 9
    Patrick

    So presumably you’ll all be happy with no electricity (and no mobile phone signal ) then ??
    Or do you think a nuclear power station is preferable ?

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  10. 10
    peter from wem

    i live near here and i would happily have them

    vortex are just the VERY VOCAL minority

    we want our electricity to be clean and local high tech well paid engineering jobs would be welcomed

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  11. 11
    Huw Peach

    I don’t think some of the comments above are helpful, even if I feel that wind energy is one of many vital tools in mankind’s armoury against climate change.

    As a democracy we should listen to each other respectfully and form our opinions without resorting to name-calling, and the members of VORTEX have every right to make their views clear and stand up for what they think is right.

    David Bellamy is an inspiring environmentalist who has done a huge amount in his life time to protect the biodiversity of our planet and to popularize his love of nature.

    The Shropshire Green Party, which supports wind power, is concerned, though, about Mr Bellamy’s bizarre comments in recent years on global warming.

    For the dodgy sources, upon which Dr Bellamy based his much-repeated opinions on climate change, we recommend watching a video clip from the Channel 4 News, on 10 May 2005, where he debated glacier melt and climate change with the environmentalist journalist George Monbiot.

    Just key in ‘Monbiot Bellamy Are the glaciers melting?’ into Google.

    It would be interesting to know if VORTEX share his views on climate change.

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  12. 12
    peter from wem

    i would be interested in organising a march in favour of wind turbines, perhaps we should start a petition on the no 10 website, i want more wind turbines and im in the majority, why must we cater for the aesthetic objections of a minority of wealthy propety and land owners when the masses need cheap clean abundant electricty to make their lives safe, warm and comfortable???

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  13. 13
    devon salopian

    tory boy- lets keepthings like they were in the fifties- you mean 1000′s of collieries plenty of coal etc, and just who closed those down?

    vintage motorbike breathes in- a clue meaning a north shropshire village

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  14. 14
    Tory boy

    you lot are all mad, we all know wind power is just an EC hoax to make us buy french and polish coal, its all a con, they dont work without public subsidy and they’re ugly too, let the swedish and french build them, we dont want them here and we dont want high taxes or socialist foreign governments dictating our energy policy, thank you, butt out brussels

    Report abuse

  15. 15
    stephen moss

    It is is a very sorry state of affairs, that those who are against anyone who speak out against wind turbines are fools.
    The insulting replies given by most of the above show one of 2 things, 1 they have not the slightest concern for anyones thoughts, and 2 you are employees of NUON.And to decribe DAVID BELLAMY as a bearded fool shows the against’s cannot put forth a logical case

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  16. 16
    Huw Peach

    Stephen Moss, I agree that insulting replies harm the cause of those who make them.

    I would, though, be interested in what you think of Dr Bellamy’s views on climate change.

    Have you watched the clip I mentioned in #11, which is easy to find on any search engine?

    Report abuse

  17. 17
    David Howell

    Wind turbines were an attractive ideal that have proved impractical. Demark has reached the 20% target for renewables via wind farms and has created huge problems. They have to export 85% of the output to Norway where it replaces hydro-power that can be turned on and off with little penalty. The reason is that the distribution system cannot handle the mismatch between availability and demand.

    Every turbine requires equal conventional power as back up as they cannot deliver power 70% of the time. This makes power stations less efficient and INCREASES their carbon footprint. Does this make sense?

    Wind farm advocates ignore the evidence but know they have lost the argument. That is why they resort to insults, personal vilification and smears; always the last refuge of naive idealists who have run out of credibility

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