Battle of the blades

The view to Arran from the Ayrshire coast is one of the most cherished in Scotland. Yet turn your head and a new horizon opens up. Stark against the skyline are the turbines of a giant wind farm.

Graceful and mesmerising? A necessary investment for our future? Or just a blot on the landscape? Whether we like it or not, Scotland is at the forefront of the UK’s wind-energy industry. Our moorlands and hillsides are becoming nurseries for wind farms, which dominate the landscape and have begun to dominate local politics.

Supporters argue that they provide a solution to a looming energy crisis and offer Scotland the chance to lead the rest of the world. Opponents say they are a scar on the landscape and threaten wildlife.

Wind farms have become battlegrounds because they are the most visible of the renewable energy sources. In Scotland there are now 40 wind farms, 20 more are being built, and a further 28 have received planning permission. There are another 73 awaiting approval.

The Herald (UK)