Letter to the editor

Does Wales really need so many onshore wind farms?

Your readers may have seen articles about how England was not building any onshore wind farms, while Wales is building many, with the likes of Bute Energy and Galileo proposing new wind farms almost daily!

Something often glossed over, by developers and the Welsh Government, though is that the windy sea of Wales has the potential to generate sufficient power to get Wales to net zero AND export the same again to England, so Wales doesn’t actually need any onshore wind.  The same is true for Scotland.  Both nations will be net exporters of power just from offshore wind, while England will always be a net importer.  It’s England that really needs onshore wind while Wales and Scotland should be focussing all efforts on offshore wind

The Welsh government, of course, currently has no control over its sea, all decisions are made in Westminster, so the “rationing” of offshore leases in Wales must be a political decision.  Why would that be? … is it to “force” the Welsh Government to desecrate Welsh landscapes (but to what end?), or to keep north Wales ticking over on the nuclear promise … if Westminster was serious about climate change, energy security and levelling up they would be pressing for far more offshore wind in Wales and onshore wind and nuclear in England in order to minimise the overall system cost for the entire U.K. The Welsh Government should lobby for this.

Your readers may wish to sign the CPRW petition urging the Welsh Government to focus more on offshore wind rather than onshore wind (but I understand if you wish to edit this out).

https://petitions.senedd.wales/petitions/245471

Cofion

Jonathan 

Dr Jonathan F Dean

Trustee: Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales

Cynefin Bachau 

Coedana 

Llanerchymedd 

LL718AB

01248 471 049

07711 898 587