Fight on over Puketoi wind farm
By TANYA KATTERNS - The Dominion Post | Wednesday, 17 December 2008UP IN ARMS: Waitahora Valley residents are upset about plans for a wind farm in their backyard. From left are Kevin and Julie Taylor with son Ollie, James Hooper-Smith, Kath Beer with daughter Amber, Stuart Brown, William Brown and Amy Brown.
A $500 million wind farm development near Dannevirke is opposed by many locals but is being backed by submissions received from as far as Britain.
Tararua District Council has received 400 submissions on Contact Energy's resource consent application for the wind farm on the Puketoi Range, with about half opposing the application.
Contact Energy wants to build 65 wind turbines on the range above the Waitahora Valley, just 10 kilometres from where Mighty River Power is considering plans to build another 100 turbines.
More than 40 of the submissions in favour of the wind farm are from Britain and Australia, and many more, from Auckland, Taupo and elsewhere in New Zealand, back it because they favour renewable energy and clean power generation.
A staunch opponent of the wind farm, fourth generation Waitahora Valley resident James Hooper-Smith, said he was against visual pollution, noise and an industrial operation in a tranquil, isolated farming area.
"I have grown up with this green, sweeping farming landscape which I want to see stay the same for my baby daughter and farming generations to come. No one who lives here wants these things being dotted through our beautiful scenery."
Julie and Kevin Taylor, who moved to the valley from Auckland 10 years ago, said it would affect their business as thoroughbred horse breeders.
"These animals we breed are hot-blooded. All it takes is one scare and if they go through a fence, their value goes from very high to not very much."
Contact Energy said it was committed to developing environmentally friendly, renewable energy projects. The wind resource on the Puketoi Range was world class and the remote site was ideal for a wind farm.
Genesis, Meridian Energy, Trustpower and Mighty River Power have made submissions to the Tararua district plan, urging the deletion of references to the ranges as protected natural features.
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