Scout Moor Wind Farm
Encyclopedia
Scout Moor Wind Farm is the largest onshore wind farm
in England. The wind farm, which was built for Peel Wind Power Ltd
, produces electricity from 26 Nordex
N80 wind turbine
s. It has a total nameplate capacity
of 65 MW of electricity, providing 154,000 MW·h per year; enough to serve the average needs of 40,000 homes. The site occupies 1347 acres (545.1 ha) of open moorland
between Edenfield
, Rawtenstall
and Rochdale
, and is split between the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale
in northern Greater Manchester
and the Borough of Rossendale
in south-eastern Lancashire
. The turbines are visible from as far away as south Manchester
, 15–20 mi (24.1–32.2 ) away.
A protest group was formed to resist the proposed construction, and attracted support from the botanist and environmental campaigner David Bellamy
. Despite the opposition, planning permission
was granted in 2005 and construction began in 2007. Although work on the project was hampered by harsh weather, difficult terrain, and previous mining activity, the wind farm was officially opened on 25 September 2008 after "years of controversy", at a cost of £50 million. In May 2007, plans were announced for a second wind power
project on the moors above Haslingden
, on the opposite side of the Rossendale Valley
.
in the South Pennines
, reaching a maximum elevation of 1552 feet (473 m) at its peak, Top of Leach. The underlying geology – a mixture of hard rock and soft shales – broadly belongs to the Lower Coal Measures. The rock and shales weather at different rates, giving the area a landscape of "steep escarpments separated by sloping shelves", although the main dome of the moor is flat and rounded. The moorland covers an area of about 1347 acres (545.1 ha), of which less than 21 acres (8.5 ha), about 2%, is occupied by the wind farm.
Scout Moor Quarry, a 250 acres (101.2 ha) open-pit mine in Edenfield
, is used for the extraction of gritstone
and sandstone
, and formerly had its own railway line. The eastern fringe of Scout Moor Wind Farm extends to Hail Storm Hill
(also known as Cowpe Moss), one of the 180 Marilyns of England. The presence of coal under Scout Moor led to extensive and unrecorded shallow coal mining in the area during the 18th and 19th centuries. Adit
s, shafts and coal seams from that period mark the landscape.
In England, scout hills are long ridges of rock, appearing to be "shot out" horizontally. Scout is a corruption of the Old English sceot, meaning "shot" or "to shoot", suggesting Anglo-Saxon
settlement in the locality at a very ancient time. Kinder Scout
in Derbyshire
shares this etymology. The village of Shuttleworth
, to the immediate west of Scout Moor, derives its name from Sceot-hulls-worth, meaning "dwelling-place by the Scout hills".
Although the UK Government has set a target of 10% for the proportion of the UK's electricity produced by renewable energy
by 2010, wind power in the UK
has a long history of controversy, with an average approval rate for planning permission of only 28% for onshore wind farms. Scout Moor was first identified as an excellent site for a wind farm in 2001. Peel Holdings commissioned market research consultants MORI
to undertake a telephone poll over seventeen days in 2002, soliciting the opinions of residents in Bury, Rossendale and Rochdale about wind farms in general and Scout Moor in particular. The results showed that 88% of respondents thought wind farms were a very or fairly good idea, 72% thought the Scout Moor project was a very or fairly good idea, and 63% stated wind power as the preferred energy source.
The proposal to build a wind farm, in a joint venture between United Utilities
and Peel Holdings, was announced in 2003. Shortly afterwards a pressure group, The Friends of Scout and Knowle Moor, was formed, and on 9 September 2003 representatives of the group attended a meeting of the Metropolitan Borough of Bury
's, Ramsbottom
and Tottington
Area Board to oppose the plans. At the meeting, the spokesperson for the group said that, although they supported the use of alternative energy, they felt that this was the wrong area. Among the objections were that the scheme was contrary to the Unitary Development Plan
and the Green Belt
, and would adversely affect common land
, open countryside and areas of ecological importance and special landscape value. The group also considered that the proposed development would be out of scale with the landscape, adversely affecting peat, water courses and wildlife, and would have a seriously detrimental visual impact, as well as causing a noise nuisance.
The second presentation was given by a representative of Scout Moor Wind Farm, who argued the need for Britain to produce clean green power without harmful emissions, to counter the increasing dangers of global warming. He went on to say that the UK has fewer wind farms than other major industrial countries in Europe, even though it is a windier country, and that North West England
has a particularly poor record, with only 1.3% of electricity generated from renewable energy. Following this meeting the campaign to oppose the proposal gathered momentum, and in November 2003 a protest was held on the moor, led by environmental campaigner Professor David Bellamy
.
Although Bury Metropolitan Borough Council supported the proposal, objections were raised by Lancashire County Council
, Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council and Rossendale Borough Council
, and a public enquiry was held in November and December 2004. The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry gave formal consent to the application for the development of the wind farm in May 2005, by which time United Utilities had sold their share in the project and ended their involvement. A number of conditions were imposed:
On 20 April 2006, Janet Anderson
(Member of Parliament
for Rossendale and Darwen) asked Margaret Beckett
, then Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
, whether the development would meet the provisions of the Commons Bill regarding the protection of and public access to common land
. The reply from Jim Knight
, (Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Rural Affairs, Landscape and Biodiversity) was that "[t]hese applications are made under section 147 of the Inclosure Act
1845. Consideration is given under these provision to the effect of the exchange on the general public's legal right of access over the land. The future provisions in the Commons Bill are not relevant."
The detailed design for the project was completed during summer 2006 and construction began in January 2007. The first task was to build a stable access road, but the moor was covered in a layer of peat with a low load-bearing capacity. The whole area had also been subjected to extensive coal mining during the 19th and early 20th centuries, so there was a potential for subsidence
. To address these problems, the mining voids were grout
ed and a floating road was constructed, using a complex system of geotextiles and geogrids
to prevent the road from sinking. This was achieved by laying a crushed-gravel base, reinforced with polyester and polypropylene grids, to bridge any potential mine voids and ensure that the weak shear strength of the subsoil was exceeded by the base course material.
The wind turbines arrived at Scout Moor in parts, transported by large goods vehicle
s along the M66 motorway
to Edenfield
as part of a 76-day long convoy of delivery.
The weather constrained the wind farm's construction for the teams from contractor McNicholas and German turbine supplier Nordex. During the final stages, the project manager for McNicholas was quoted as saying:
The wind farm, which stretches across nearly 2 miles (3.2 km) of open moorland
between Edenfield, Rawtenstall and Rochdale, the largest onshore wind farm in England, was officially opened on 25 September 2008. As of 26 August 2008, 21 of 26 turbines had been commissioned and 4,000 MW·h of electricity had been exported to the National Grid. The turbines are visible from south Manchester, away, and are expected to produce enough electricity to meet the needs of 40,000 average homes. Scout Moor has the capacity to produce a total of 65 MW, compared with the 90 MW capacity of Kentish Flats
, the United Kingdom's largest offshore wind farm. The total cost of the Scout Moor project was £50 million, but Peel Holdings expect the turbines to be in operation for at least 25 years. Since its opening, the wind farm "has become a real tourist attraction"; a calendar showing photographs of the wind farm's construction has been featured in local news stories.
, Peel Wind Power Ltd, will provide up to £500,000 to help landowners create biodiverse
areas on the land surrounding the moor. A prime target habitat envisaged to be enhanced and re-created under the Habitat Enhancement Plan is upland blanket bog
and important habitats for skylark
s and wading birds on the moorland fringe. To receive funding, landowners within an identified area will need to apply to a panel made up of representatives from Peel, the local authorities and independent ecological experts. This panel will meet regularly throughout the year.
Peel Wind Power are members of RenewableUK and state in their member's profile that they are actively seeking new opportunities in the renewable energy sector. In November 2008, the company announced a two-year agreement to look at developing wind farms on land owned by UK Coal
. If the 14 sites encompassed by the agreement were successfully developed, they would have the potential for 54 wind turbines generating up to 133 megawatts of power. Peel Energy director Steven Underwood said: "This agreement is an important step for Peel Energy, significantly expanding its onshore pipeline and gaining access to some of the UK's best potential wind farm locations." The Peel group holds a 28% stake in UK Coal.
At a private meeting held in May 2007 between developers and invited local councillors, plans were put forward for another large wind farm consisting of 24 turbines on the moors above nearby Haslingden, spanning Thirteen Stone Hill and Oswaldtwistle
Moor. Following the meeting Catherine Pilling, a Rossendale Liberal Democrat
councillor, expressed her view that the natural beauty of the Rossendale Valley
was under threat as it was increasingly being targeted by wind farm developers. "Our party is very much in favour of renewable energy," she said, "but Rossendale is an area of outstanding beauty, and you have to ask: Would they be building a similar thing in the Lake District
?" Rossendale Borough Council leader Duncan Ruddick representing the electoral ward
of Worsley in Rossendale, the proposed site of the new wind farm, said he was against wind farms and would be campaigning against it and speaking at the Development Control committee when it came. The leader of the Labour
local councillors was also opposed to the plan, saying that he was concerned about the size of the turbines and that the visual impact on the "beautiful West Pennine Moors
" would be devastating. Planning permission for the development was granted by Hyndburn
Council in March 2010.
Wind farm
A wind farm is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electric power. A large wind farm may consist of several hundred individual wind turbines, and cover an extended area of hundreds of square miles, but the land between the turbines may be used for agricultural or other...
in England. The wind farm, which was built for Peel Wind Power Ltd
Peel Group
The Peel Group is a diversified real estate, transport and infrastructure investment company in the United Kingdom. It has assets owned and under management approaching £6 billion...
, produces electricity from 26 Nordex
Nordex
Nordex is a German company that designs, sells and manufactures wind turbines. The domicile is located in the German city of Hamburg, production takes place in Rostock, China and Jonesboro, Arkansas. The company was founded in 1985 in Give, Denmark. Since then the company steadily grew...
N80 wind turbine
Wind turbine
A wind turbine is a device that converts kinetic energy from the wind into mechanical energy. If the mechanical energy is used to produce electricity, the device may be called a wind generator or wind charger. If the mechanical energy is used to drive machinery, such as for grinding grain or...
s. It has a total nameplate capacity
Nameplate capacity
Nameplate capacity, also known as the rated capacity, nominal capacity, installed capacity or maximum effect, refers to the intended technical full–load sustained output of a facility such as a power plant, a chemical plant, fuel plant, metal refinery, mine, and many others.For dispatchable power,...
of 65 MW of electricity, providing 154,000 MW·h per year; enough to serve the average needs of 40,000 homes. The site occupies 1347 acres (545.1 ha) of open moorland
Moorland
Moorland or moor is a type of habitat, in the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome, found in upland areas, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils and heavy fog...
between Edenfield
Edenfield
Edenfield is a village within the Rossendale borough of Lancashire, England. Lying on the River Irwell, it is around north of Ramsbottom, south of Rawtenstall, and west of Norden, and has a total population of 2,080....
, Rawtenstall
Rawtenstall
Rawtenstall is a town at the centre of the Rossendale Valley, in Lancashire, England. It is the seat for the Borough of Rossendale, in which it is located. The town lies 18 miles north of Manchester, 22 miles east of the county town of Preston and 45 miles south east of Lancaster...
and Rochdale
Rochdale
Rochdale is a large market town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the foothills of the Pennines on the River Roch, north-northwest of Oldham, and north-northeast of the city of Manchester. Rochdale is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan...
, and is split between the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale
Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale
The Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester in North West England. It is named after its largest town, Rochdale, but spans a far larger area which includes the towns of Middleton, Heywood, Littleborough and Milnrow, and the village of Wardle.The borough was...
in northern Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
and the Borough of Rossendale
Rossendale
Rossendale is a local government district with borough status. It is made up of a number of small former mill towns in Lancashire, England centered around the valley of the River Irwell in the industrial North West...
in south-eastern Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
. The turbines are visible from as far away as south Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, 15–20 mi (24.1–32.2 ) away.
A protest group was formed to resist the proposed construction, and attracted support from the botanist and environmental campaigner David Bellamy
David Bellamy
David James Bellamy OBE is a British author, broadcaster, environmental campaigner and botanist. He has lived in County Durham since 1960.-Career:...
. Despite the opposition, planning permission
Planning permission
Planning permission or planning consent is the permission required in the United Kingdom in order to be allowed to build on land, or change the use of land or buildings. Within the UK the occupier of any land or building will need title to that land or building , but will also need "planning...
was granted in 2005 and construction began in 2007. Although work on the project was hampered by harsh weather, difficult terrain, and previous mining activity, the wind farm was officially opened on 25 September 2008 after "years of controversy", at a cost of £50 million. In May 2007, plans were announced for a second wind power
Wind power
Wind power is the conversion of wind energy into a useful form of energy, such as using wind turbines to make electricity, windmills for mechanical power, windpumps for water pumping or drainage, or sails to propel ships....
project on the moors above Haslingden
Haslingden
Haslingden is a small town in Rossendale, Lancashire, England. It is north of Manchester. The name means 'valley of the hazels', though the town is in fact set on a high and windy hill. In the early 20th century Haslingden had the status of a municipal borough, but following local government...
, on the opposite side of the Rossendale Valley
Rossendale Valley
The Rossendale Valley is part of the Forest of Rossendale, an upland area of North West England, in Lancashire. The area is within the Borough of Rossendale...
.
Geography
Scout Moor is an upland moor of peat bog and heatherCalluna
Calluna vulgaris is the sole species in the genus Calluna in the family Ericaceae. It is a low-growing perennial shrub growing to tall, or rarely to and taller, and is found widely in Europe and Asia Minor on acidic soils in open sunny situations and in moderate shade...
in the South Pennines
South Pennines
South Pennines is a region of moorland and hill country in northern England lying towards the southern end of the Pennines. It is bounded to the west by the Forest of Rossendale and the Yorkshire Dales to the north...
, reaching a maximum elevation of 1552 feet (473 m) at its peak, Top of Leach. The underlying geology – a mixture of hard rock and soft shales – broadly belongs to the Lower Coal Measures. The rock and shales weather at different rates, giving the area a landscape of "steep escarpments separated by sloping shelves", although the main dome of the moor is flat and rounded. The moorland covers an area of about 1347 acres (545.1 ha), of which less than 21 acres (8.5 ha), about 2%, is occupied by the wind farm.
Edenfield
Edenfield is a village within the Rossendale borough of Lancashire, England. Lying on the River Irwell, it is around north of Ramsbottom, south of Rawtenstall, and west of Norden, and has a total population of 2,080....
, is used for the extraction of gritstone
Gritstone
Gritstone or Grit is a hard, coarse-grained, siliceous sandstone. This term is especially applied to such sandstones that are quarried for building material. British gritstone was used for millstones to mill flour, to grind wood into pulp for paper and for grindstones to sharpen blades. "Grit" is...
and sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
, and formerly had its own railway line. The eastern fringe of Scout Moor Wind Farm extends to Hail Storm Hill
Hail Storm Hill
Hail Storm Hill, also known as Cowpe Moss, is the highest point of the Forest of Rossendale, an area of moorland and hill country situated between the West Pennine Moors and the South Pennines...
(also known as Cowpe Moss), one of the 180 Marilyns of England. The presence of coal under Scout Moor led to extensive and unrecorded shallow coal mining in the area during the 18th and 19th centuries. Adit
Adit
An adit is an entrance to an underground mine which is horizontal or nearly horizontal, by which the mine can be entered, drained of water, and ventilated.-Construction:...
s, shafts and coal seams from that period mark the landscape.
History
Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
settlement in the locality at a very ancient time. Kinder Scout
Kinder Scout
Kinder Scout is a moorland plateau in the Dark Peak of the Derbyshire Peak District in England. Part of the moor, at 636 m above sea level, is the highest point in the Peak District, the highest point in Derbyshire, and the highest point in the East Midlands. It is accessible from the villages of...
in Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
shares this etymology. The village of Shuttleworth
Shuttleworth, Greater Manchester
Shuttleworth is a hamlet at the northeastern extremity of the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the South Pennines, north of Bury and south of Edenfield; Scout Moor Wind Farm lies to the immediate east...
, to the immediate west of Scout Moor, derives its name from Sceot-hulls-worth, meaning "dwelling-place by the Scout hills".
Although the UK Government has set a target of 10% for the proportion of the UK's electricity produced by renewable energy
Renewable energy
Renewable energy is energy which comes from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat, which are renewable . About 16% of global final energy consumption comes from renewables, with 10% coming from traditional biomass, which is mainly used for heating, and 3.4% from...
by 2010, wind power in the UK
Wind power in the United Kingdom
By mid-2011, the installed capacity of wind power in the United Kingdom was over 5.7 gigawatts and the UK is ranked as the world’s eighth largest producer of wind power. Wind power is expected to continue growing in the UK for the foreseeable future, RenewableUK estimates that more than...
has a long history of controversy, with an average approval rate for planning permission of only 28% for onshore wind farms. Scout Moor was first identified as an excellent site for a wind farm in 2001. Peel Holdings commissioned market research consultants MORI
MORI
Ipsos MORI is the second largest market research organisation in the United Kingdom, formed by a merger of Ipsos UK and MORI, two of the Britain's leading survey companies in October 2005...
to undertake a telephone poll over seventeen days in 2002, soliciting the opinions of residents in Bury, Rossendale and Rochdale about wind farms in general and Scout Moor in particular. The results showed that 88% of respondents thought wind farms were a very or fairly good idea, 72% thought the Scout Moor project was a very or fairly good idea, and 63% stated wind power as the preferred energy source.
The proposal to build a wind farm, in a joint venture between United Utilities
United Utilities
United Utilities Group PLC is the UK's largest listed water business. The Group owns and manages the regulated water and waste water network in the north west England, through it subsidiary United Utilities Water PLC , which is responsible for the vast majority of the group's assets and...
and Peel Holdings, was announced in 2003. Shortly afterwards a pressure group, The Friends of Scout and Knowle Moor, was formed, and on 9 September 2003 representatives of the group attended a meeting of the Metropolitan Borough of Bury
Metropolitan Borough of Bury
The Metropolitan Borough of Bury is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, in North West England. Lying to the north of the City of Manchester, the borough is composed of six towns: Bury, Ramsbottom, Tottington, Radcliffe, Whitefield and Prestwich, and has a population of 181,900...
's, Ramsbottom
Ramsbottom
Ramsbottom is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester, England. It is situated on the course of the River Irwell, in the West Pennine Moors. Historically within Lancashire, it is located north-northwest of Bury, and north-northwest of Manchester...
and Tottington
Tottington, Greater Manchester
Tottington is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, England.Historically a part of Lancashire, Tottington's early history is marked by its status as an important Medieval fee, a type of Royal Manor which encompassed several townships...
Area Board to oppose the plans. At the meeting, the spokesperson for the group said that, although they supported the use of alternative energy, they felt that this was the wrong area. Among the objections were that the scheme was contrary to the Unitary Development Plan
Unitary Development Plan
In United Kingdom planning law, a unitary development plan is an old-style development plan prepared by a metropolitan district and some unitary local authorities that contains policies equivalent to those in both a structure plan and a local plan...
and the Green Belt
Green Belt (UK)
In United Kingdom town planning, the green belt is a policy for controlling urban growth. The idea is for a ring of countryside where urbanisation will be resisted for the foreseeable future, maintaining an area where agriculture, forestry and outdoor leisure can be expected to prevail...
, and would adversely affect common land
Common land
Common land is land owned collectively or by one person, but over which other people have certain traditional rights, such as to allow their livestock to graze upon it, to collect firewood, or to cut turf for fuel...
, open countryside and areas of ecological importance and special landscape value. The group also considered that the proposed development would be out of scale with the landscape, adversely affecting peat, water courses and wildlife, and would have a seriously detrimental visual impact, as well as causing a noise nuisance.
The second presentation was given by a representative of Scout Moor Wind Farm, who argued the need for Britain to produce clean green power without harmful emissions, to counter the increasing dangers of global warming. He went on to say that the UK has fewer wind farms than other major industrial countries in Europe, even though it is a windier country, and that North West England
North West England
North West England, informally known as The North West, is one of the nine official regions of England.North West England had a 2006 estimated population of 6,853,201 the third most populated region after London and the South East...
has a particularly poor record, with only 1.3% of electricity generated from renewable energy. Following this meeting the campaign to oppose the proposal gathered momentum, and in November 2003 a protest was held on the moor, led by environmental campaigner Professor David Bellamy
David Bellamy
David James Bellamy OBE is a British author, broadcaster, environmental campaigner and botanist. He has lived in County Durham since 1960.-Career:...
.
Lancashire County Council
Lancashire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Lancashire, England. It currently consists of 84 councillors, and is controlled by the Conservative Party, who won control of the council in the local council elections in June 2009, ending 28 years of...
, Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council and Rossendale Borough Council
Rossendale Borough Council
Rossendale Borough Council is the local authority for the Rossendale district of Lancashire, in north west England.It was formed on 1 April 1974 as a result of the 1972 Local Government Act and consists of:...
, and a public enquiry was held in November and December 2004. The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry gave formal consent to the application for the development of the wind farm in May 2005, by which time United Utilities had sold their share in the project and ended their involvement. A number of conditions were imposed:
On 20 April 2006, Janet Anderson
Janet Anderson
Janet Anderson is an English Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament for Rossendale and Darwen from 1992 until 2010.-Early life:...
(Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Rossendale and Darwen) asked Margaret Beckett
Margaret Beckett
Margaret Mary Beckett is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Derby South since 1983, rising to become the Deputy Leader of the Labour Party under John Smith, from 18 July 1992 to 12 May 1994, and briefly serving as Leader of the Party following Smith's death...
, then Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is a UK cabinet-level position in charge of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and the successor to the positions of Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport...
, whether the development would meet the provisions of the Commons Bill regarding the protection of and public access to common land
Common land
Common land is land owned collectively or by one person, but over which other people have certain traditional rights, such as to allow their livestock to graze upon it, to collect firewood, or to cut turf for fuel...
. The reply from Jim Knight
Jim Knight
James Philip Knight, Baron Knight of Weymouth is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for South Dorset from 2001 until 2010, when he lost his seat. Knight held several ministerial posts during his time as an MP including Minister for the South West and Minister for...
, (Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Rural Affairs, Landscape and Biodiversity) was that "[t]hese applications are made under section 147 of the Inclosure Act
Inclosure Act
The Inclosure or Enclosure Acts were a series of United Kingdom Acts of Parliament which enclosed open fields and common land in the country. They removed previously existing rights of local people to carry out activities in these areas, such as cultivation, cutting hay, grazing animals or using...
1845. Consideration is given under these provision to the effect of the exchange on the general public's legal right of access over the land. The future provisions in the Commons Bill are not relevant."
Construction
Subsidence
Subsidence is the motion of a surface as it shifts downward relative to a datum such as sea-level. The opposite of subsidence is uplift, which results in an increase in elevation...
. To address these problems, the mining voids were grout
Grout
Grout is a construction material used to embed rebars in masonry walls, connect sections of pre-cast concrete, fill voids, and seal joints . Grout is generally composed of a mixture of water, cement, sand, often color tint, and sometimes fine gravel...
ed and a floating road was constructed, using a complex system of geotextiles and geogrids
Geogrids
A geogrid is geosynthetic material used to reinforce soils and similar materials. Geogrids are commonly used to reinforce retaining walls, as well as subbases or subsoils below roads or structures. Soils pull apart under tension. Compared to soil, geogrids are strong in tension...
to prevent the road from sinking. This was achieved by laying a crushed-gravel base, reinforced with polyester and polypropylene grids, to bridge any potential mine voids and ensure that the weak shear strength of the subsoil was exceeded by the base course material.
The wind turbines arrived at Scout Moor in parts, transported by large goods vehicle
Large Goods Vehicle
A large goods vehicle , is the European Union term for any truck with a gross combination mass of over...
s along the M66 motorway
M66 motorway
The M66 is a motorway in Lancashire and Greater Manchester, England. It is long and provides part of the route between the M62 and M60 motorways and the M65, with the rest being provided by the A56.-Route:...
to Edenfield
Edenfield
Edenfield is a village within the Rossendale borough of Lancashire, England. Lying on the River Irwell, it is around north of Ramsbottom, south of Rawtenstall, and west of Norden, and has a total population of 2,080....
as part of a 76-day long convoy of delivery.
The weather constrained the wind farm's construction for the teams from contractor McNicholas and German turbine supplier Nordex. During the final stages, the project manager for McNicholas was quoted as saying:
The wind farm, which stretches across nearly 2 miles (3.2 km) of open moorland
Moorland
Moorland or moor is a type of habitat, in the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome, found in upland areas, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils and heavy fog...
between Edenfield, Rawtenstall and Rochdale, the largest onshore wind farm in England, was officially opened on 25 September 2008. As of 26 August 2008, 21 of 26 turbines had been commissioned and 4,000 MW·h of electricity had been exported to the National Grid. The turbines are visible from south Manchester, away, and are expected to produce enough electricity to meet the needs of 40,000 average homes. Scout Moor has the capacity to produce a total of 65 MW, compared with the 90 MW capacity of Kentish Flats
Kentish Flats Offshore Wind Farm
The Kentish Flats Offshore Wind Farm is a wind farm located off the coast of Kent, England on a large, flat and shallow plateau just outside the main Thames shipping lanes. The distance from the nearest wind turbine to Whitstable is . The nearest turbine is away from Herne Bay...
, the United Kingdom's largest offshore wind farm. The total cost of the Scout Moor project was £50 million, but Peel Holdings expect the turbines to be in operation for at least 25 years. Since its opening, the wind farm "has become a real tourist attraction"; a calendar showing photographs of the wind farm's construction has been featured in local news stories.
Future plans
Over the lifetime of the wind farm, Peel Holdings' energy subsidiarySubsidiary
A subsidiary company, subsidiary, or daughter company is a company that is completely or partly owned and wholly controlled by another company that owns more than half of the subsidiary's stock. The subsidiary can be a company, corporation, or limited liability company. In some cases it is a...
, Peel Wind Power Ltd, will provide up to £500,000 to help landowners create biodiverse
Biodiversity
Biodiversity is the degree of variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or an entire planet. Biodiversity is a measure of the health of ecosystems. Biodiversity is in part a function of climate. In terrestrial habitats, tropical regions are typically rich whereas polar regions...
areas on the land surrounding the moor. A prime target habitat envisaged to be enhanced and re-created under the Habitat Enhancement Plan is upland blanket bog
Blanket bog
Blanket bog or blanket mire is an area of peatland, forming where there is a climate of high rainfall and a low level of evapotranspiration, allowing peat to develop not only in wet hollows but over large expanses of undulating ground. The blanketing of the ground with a variable depth of peat...
and important habitats for skylark
Skylark
The Skylark is a small passerine bird species. This lark breeds across most of Europe and Asia and in the mountains of north Africa. It is mainly resident in the west of its range, but eastern populations are more migratory, moving further south in winter. Even in the milder west of its range,...
s and wading birds on the moorland fringe. To receive funding, landowners within an identified area will need to apply to a panel made up of representatives from Peel, the local authorities and independent ecological experts. This panel will meet regularly throughout the year.
Peel Wind Power are members of RenewableUK and state in their member's profile that they are actively seeking new opportunities in the renewable energy sector. In November 2008, the company announced a two-year agreement to look at developing wind farms on land owned by UK Coal
UK Coal
UK Coal plc is the largest coal mining business in the United Kingdom. The Company is based in Harworth, in Nottinghamshire. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a former constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.-History:...
. If the 14 sites encompassed by the agreement were successfully developed, they would have the potential for 54 wind turbines generating up to 133 megawatts of power. Peel Energy director Steven Underwood said: "This agreement is an important step for Peel Energy, significantly expanding its onshore pipeline and gaining access to some of the UK's best potential wind farm locations." The Peel group holds a 28% stake in UK Coal.
At a private meeting held in May 2007 between developers and invited local councillors, plans were put forward for another large wind farm consisting of 24 turbines on the moors above nearby Haslingden, spanning Thirteen Stone Hill and Oswaldtwistle
Oswaldtwistle
Oswaldtwistle is a town within the Hyndburn borough of Lancashire, England. It lies on the course of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, east-southeast of Blackburn and is contiguous to Accrington.-History:...
Moor. Following the meeting Catherine Pilling, a Rossendale Liberal Democrat
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
councillor, expressed her view that the natural beauty of the Rossendale Valley
Rossendale Valley
The Rossendale Valley is part of the Forest of Rossendale, an upland area of North West England, in Lancashire. The area is within the Borough of Rossendale...
was under threat as it was increasingly being targeted by wind farm developers. "Our party is very much in favour of renewable energy," she said, "but Rossendale is an area of outstanding beauty, and you have to ask: Would they be building a similar thing in the Lake District
Lake District
The Lake District, also commonly known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous not only for its lakes and its mountains but also for its associations with the early 19th century poetry and writings of William Wordsworth...
?" Rossendale Borough Council leader Duncan Ruddick representing the electoral ward
Wards of the United Kingdom
A ward in the United Kingdom is an electoral district at sub-national level represented by one or more councillors. It is the primary unit of British administrative and electoral geography .-England:...
of Worsley in Rossendale, the proposed site of the new wind farm, said he was against wind farms and would be campaigning against it and speaking at the Development Control committee when it came. The leader of the Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
local councillors was also opposed to the plan, saying that he was concerned about the size of the turbines and that the visual impact on the "beautiful West Pennine Moors
West Pennine Moors
The West Pennine Moors cover an area of approximately of moorland and reservoirs in Lancashire and Greater Manchester, England.The West Pennine Moors are separated from the main Pennine range by the Irwell Valley. The moorland includes Withnell, Anglezarke and Rivington Moors in the extreme west,...
" would be devastating. Planning permission for the development was granted by Hyndburn
Hyndburn
Hyndburn is a local government district with borough status in Lancashire, England. Its council is based in Accrington. The district is named after the River Hyndburn....
Council in March 2010.
Specifications
| Manufacturer | Nordex Nordex Nordex is a German company that designs, sells and manufactures wind turbines. The domicile is located in the German city of Hamburg, production takes place in Rostock, China and Jonesboro, Arkansas. The company was founded in 1985 in Give, Denmark. Since then the company steadily grew... |
| Model | N80 |
| Tower height | 60 metres (197 ft) |
| Blade length | 40 metres (131 ft) |
| Total maximum height | 100 metres (328 ft) |
| Turbine weight | 250 tonnes (246.1 LT) |
| Maximum turbine effect Nameplate capacity Nameplate capacity, also known as the rated capacity, nominal capacity, installed capacity or maximum effect, refers to the intended technical full–load sustained output of a facility such as a power plant, a chemical plant, fuel plant, metal refinery, mine, and many others.For dispatchable power,... |
2.5 MW |
| Total nameplate capacity (maximum output) | 65 MW |
| Electricity generated per annum | 154000 MW·h |
| Capacity factor Capacity factor The net capacity factor or load factor of a power plant is the ratio of the actual output of a power plant over a period of time and its potential output if it had operated at full nameplate capacity the entire time... |
27% |
| Total carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom... displaced per annum |
160000 tonnes (157,472.6 LT) |
| Total sulphur dioxide displaced per annum | 2000 tonnes (1,968.4 LT) |
| Total nitrogen oxide Nitrogen oxide Nitrogen oxide can refer to a binary compound of oxygen and nitrogen, or a mixture of such compounds:* Nitric oxide, also known as nitrogen monoxide, , nitrogen oxide* Nitrogen dioxide , nitrogen oxide... s displaced per annum |
570 tonnes (561 LT) |
Capacity factor
As the figures given in the table above were published before the turbines had been operational for a full year they are projected rather than recorded figures. Wind speed is not constant, therefore, a wind farm's annual energy production never achieves the sum of the generator nameplate ratings multiplied by the total hours in a year. The ratio of actual productivity in a year to this theoretical maximum is called the capacity factor. Typical capacity factors are 20–40%, with values at the upper end of the range achieved on particularly favourable sites. The expected capacity factor for Scout Moor Wind Farm, calculated from the company's projected figures, is 27%.See also
- Energy use and conservation in the United KingdomEnergy use and conservation in the United KingdomEnergy use in the United Kingdom stood at 3,894.6 kilogrammes of oil equivalent per capita in 2005 compared to a world average of 1,778.0. In 2008, total energy consumed was 9.85 exajoules - around 2% of the estimated 474 EJ worldwide total...
External links
- www.scoutmoorwindfarm.co.uk, official website.
- www.manchesterismyplanet.com, climate change news for Greater Manchester.
- www.geograph.org.uk, Paul Anderson's Scout Moor construction picture gallery.