Charlie M
Well-known member
Thousands of birdwatchers and visitors to Weymouth and Portland enjoy the sea and shore birds which live and breed along the unique coastal strip on this part of Dorset’s beautiful coastline. Weymouth Bay, Portland Harbour, and the Chesil Beach and Fleet Nature Reserves are important throughout the year but for many birds these areas become hugely important during the winter months, when nationally important populations of sea duck and geese arrive to winter in these waters.
These birds are now threatened by the planned installation of 11 wind turbine generators set 20metres behind the Portland Harbour Breakwaters.
The Portland Harbour Wind Farm Proposal has been made by Portland Port Authority which has commissioned Powergen to produce a feasibility study. If successful Powergen would go ahead and build the wind farm:
Including the 3 blades each wind turbine will reach a height of 102 metres or 330 feet above mean sea level.
With diameters of 80metres the 11 turbines will present a combined rotating barrier of at least 880 metres!
Depending on wind speeds the rotational speeds will range between 10 and 20 revolutions per minute.
The first meeting to discuss the ornithological implications with groups such as R.S.P.B., English Nature and Portland Bird Observatory was called for 22nd September 2003 - some 18 days after planning consent was sought for 2 x 330 foot anemometer poles!
Ironically, out of consideration for physical damage which might be caused to the breakwaters (which are protected by English Heritage) if footings had to be installed, these poles will be tethered to the breakwater by means of cables. These cables alone will present a metal footprint of 900square metres!
Even though it seems obvious to most of us that some bird kills would be inevitable, no-one from the pro-Wind Farm camp at the meeting had even considered that these cables would be threatening to birds. As a sop to raised concerns it was decided that Powergen would install plastic bird scarers to the cabling!
THIS AREA IS OF NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL IMPORTANCE FOR BIRDS.
Many birds choose to move east or west along the coast by crossing Weymouth Bay, Weymouth Harbour and the Fleet rather than the longer route around Portland Bill some 5 miles to the south
The wintering flock of between 400 and 500 Red Breasted Mergansers is of national importance. Local knowledge refers to mergansers crossing the breakwaters twice daily!
Over 1000 Dark-bellied Brent Geese spend the winter along the Fleet. This is a nationally important flock. In recent years observers have also noted increasing numbers of Pale-bellied Brent Geese here.
5 species of Grebe as well as varying numbers of Divers also winter here, and also move to and fro across the breakwaters.
There is a Little Tern colony on the Fleet. These birds feed in all the three areas and for most terns moving along the coast this is the preferred crossing point.
Likewise wading birds move across these zones at the will of tides and weather. Resident gulls, cormorants etc move freely between the harbour and Weymouth Bay and the whole area is famous for bad weather movements which might result in sudden ‘wrecks’ of birds such as auks and petrels.
Not all these bird movements are diurnal: much movement takes place in poor visibilities or at night.
The following consents are necessary;
DTLR – Section 34 Coast Protection Act 1949
DEFRA – Section 5 Food and Environment Protection Act 1985
DTI – Section 36 Electricity Act 1989 Incorporating General Permitted Development Order OR Town & Country Planning consent
Portland Harbour Authority – Tidal Works Licence
Nowhere does it appear that consent is necessary under any wildlife protection legislation!
It is therefore up to all us concerned individuals to protest in the strongest possible terms if they do not want this scheme to go ahead.
Write to the local member of parliament, Jim Knight (Labour) (email: [email protected]) - whose majority is a tiny 153!
Contact Dorset County Council and Weymouth and Portland Council.
Inform Portland Port of your concerns and let Powergen know how you feel about the project.
The Project Developer is: Anne-marie Coyle ([email protected])
Direct Line: 024-7642-4937
Whilst the usual ‘jobs’ justification may be trotted out, long term jobs will be few and far between, and it is high time that someone costed the real value of money brought into the local community by visitors who come to Weymouth & Portland for the wildlife. That money is sustainable and is spent in our shops, hotels and guest houses.
Wind farms may yet become a feature of the UK landscape, but this is not the right place to build one on Portland - and for a wind farm of only 11 turbines there will be a very high potential environmental price to pay.
ONCE THESE TURBINES ARE BUILT IT WILL BE TOO LATE TO HALT THE SLAUGHTER. PLEASE ACT NOW.
Peter Mowday & Charlie Moores,
Portland Bird Observatory committee members.
For more information/offers of help please email: [email protected]
These birds are now threatened by the planned installation of 11 wind turbine generators set 20metres behind the Portland Harbour Breakwaters.
The Portland Harbour Wind Farm Proposal has been made by Portland Port Authority which has commissioned Powergen to produce a feasibility study. If successful Powergen would go ahead and build the wind farm:
Including the 3 blades each wind turbine will reach a height of 102 metres or 330 feet above mean sea level.
With diameters of 80metres the 11 turbines will present a combined rotating barrier of at least 880 metres!
Depending on wind speeds the rotational speeds will range between 10 and 20 revolutions per minute.
The first meeting to discuss the ornithological implications with groups such as R.S.P.B., English Nature and Portland Bird Observatory was called for 22nd September 2003 - some 18 days after planning consent was sought for 2 x 330 foot anemometer poles!
Ironically, out of consideration for physical damage which might be caused to the breakwaters (which are protected by English Heritage) if footings had to be installed, these poles will be tethered to the breakwater by means of cables. These cables alone will present a metal footprint of 900square metres!
Even though it seems obvious to most of us that some bird kills would be inevitable, no-one from the pro-Wind Farm camp at the meeting had even considered that these cables would be threatening to birds. As a sop to raised concerns it was decided that Powergen would install plastic bird scarers to the cabling!
THIS AREA IS OF NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL IMPORTANCE FOR BIRDS.
Many birds choose to move east or west along the coast by crossing Weymouth Bay, Weymouth Harbour and the Fleet rather than the longer route around Portland Bill some 5 miles to the south
The wintering flock of between 400 and 500 Red Breasted Mergansers is of national importance. Local knowledge refers to mergansers crossing the breakwaters twice daily!
Over 1000 Dark-bellied Brent Geese spend the winter along the Fleet. This is a nationally important flock. In recent years observers have also noted increasing numbers of Pale-bellied Brent Geese here.
5 species of Grebe as well as varying numbers of Divers also winter here, and also move to and fro across the breakwaters.
There is a Little Tern colony on the Fleet. These birds feed in all the three areas and for most terns moving along the coast this is the preferred crossing point.
Likewise wading birds move across these zones at the will of tides and weather. Resident gulls, cormorants etc move freely between the harbour and Weymouth Bay and the whole area is famous for bad weather movements which might result in sudden ‘wrecks’ of birds such as auks and petrels.
Not all these bird movements are diurnal: much movement takes place in poor visibilities or at night.
The following consents are necessary;
DTLR – Section 34 Coast Protection Act 1949
DEFRA – Section 5 Food and Environment Protection Act 1985
DTI – Section 36 Electricity Act 1989 Incorporating General Permitted Development Order OR Town & Country Planning consent
Portland Harbour Authority – Tidal Works Licence
Nowhere does it appear that consent is necessary under any wildlife protection legislation!
It is therefore up to all us concerned individuals to protest in the strongest possible terms if they do not want this scheme to go ahead.
Write to the local member of parliament, Jim Knight (Labour) (email: [email protected]) - whose majority is a tiny 153!
Contact Dorset County Council and Weymouth and Portland Council.
Inform Portland Port of your concerns and let Powergen know how you feel about the project.
The Project Developer is: Anne-marie Coyle ([email protected])
Direct Line: 024-7642-4937
Whilst the usual ‘jobs’ justification may be trotted out, long term jobs will be few and far between, and it is high time that someone costed the real value of money brought into the local community by visitors who come to Weymouth & Portland for the wildlife. That money is sustainable and is spent in our shops, hotels and guest houses.
Wind farms may yet become a feature of the UK landscape, but this is not the right place to build one on Portland - and for a wind farm of only 11 turbines there will be a very high potential environmental price to pay.
ONCE THESE TURBINES ARE BUILT IT WILL BE TOO LATE TO HALT THE SLAUGHTER. PLEASE ACT NOW.
Peter Mowday & Charlie Moores,
Portland Bird Observatory committee members.
For more information/offers of help please email: [email protected]
