A legal challenge has been made by The National Trust, English Heritage and East Northamptonshire Council against planning permission for a wind farm that would be built within one mile of a Grade I listed building and registered park and garden.
The proposal would see four 126.5m wind turbines built within the setting of the Lyveden New Bield site, a place described by the planning inspector who granted approval for the plans as ‘probably the finest example of an Elizabethan garden, with a cultural value of national if not international significance.’
Fiona Reynolds, director-general of the National Trust explained the decision to take the matter to the administrative court: ‘We fully support renewable energy and have made our own commitment to halve our dependence on fossil fuels by 2020. We have also backed a number of wind proposals where scale and setting have been considered appropriate.
‘However, the decision to allow a development of this size so close to one of the country’s most treasured historic places is both damaging to Lyveden New Bield and could have serious implications for other heritage sites across the UK.”
Apparently the wind turbines would be prominent, modern structures in a landscape that still evokes the character of Lyveden New Bield’s historic Rockingham Forest surroundings. The turbines would be visible from almost everywhere on the property.
More information: www.nationaltrust.org.uk