In a rebuke to Trump, SNP backs world's largest wind farm
Developers SSE Renewables, claim that, if it is fully delivered, then it 'would become the world's largest offshore wind farm'. Conservation groups raised concerns about the danger that the development will kill tens of thousands of puffins, kittiewakes and gannets, including globally important colonies at Bass Rock.
It comes just days after Donald Trump attacked the spread of 'windmills' during his visit to Scotland, saying they were 'ruining' countries in Europe. Berwick Bank - proposed to be built 23 miles off the coast of St Abbs - aims to deliver 4.1 gigawatts (GW) of capacity, which is believed to be enough to power every home in Scotland twice over and around 17 per cent of the homes in the UK.
The development will feature up to 307 turbines and have two connection points to the grid - one in Dunbar, East Lothian, and another in Blyth, Northumberland. But the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and partner conservation groups condemned the decision to approve the development.
Anne McCall, director of RSPB Scotland, said: 'This is a very dark day for seabirds. It is a terrible decision on a really bad development. Berwick Bank would be catastrophic for Scotland's globally important seabirds which are already facing alarming declines. In addition, its impacts are so damaging they will make the relative impacts of other windfarms significantly higher. This one wind farm is going to make it really challenging to accelerate renewable projects across Scottish seas. We are incredibly concerned that Scottish Government have granted consent for a project which could catapult some of Scotland's most-loved seabird species towards extinction.'
The National Trust for Scotland said the news was 'deeply disappointing', fearing there will be 'significant harm' caused to seabird colonies at the nearby St Abb's Head National Nature Reserve. A spokesperson said: 'At the National Trust for Scotland we are supportive of the drive towards renewable energy, but not at the expense of the very nature and habitats this effort is supposed to help save in the face of climate change.' The Scottish Government highlighted that the consent is subject to SSE Renewables producing a detailed sea bird compensation plan outlining how adverse impacts on seabirds will be compensated for. Stephen Wheeler, the managing director of SSE Renewables, said news of the approval is 'hugely welcome'. He added: 'At over 4GW of potential capacity, Berwick Bank can play a pivotal role in meeting the mission of Clean Power 2030 for the UK and achieving Scotland's decarbonisation and climate action goals. Berwick Bank has the potential to rapidly scale up Scotland's operational renewable energy capacity and can accelerate the delivery of homegrown, affordable and secure clean energy to UK consumers from Scottish offshore wind, helping meet the UK's clean power ambition by 2030.'
The approval comes after the SNP Government unveiled a new target of having up to 40GW of offshore wind capacity by 2040, which is a significant ramping up from the existing target of 8-11GW by 2030. Based on current average operating capacities it would mean an increase from around 1,000 turbines in five years' time to 5,000 within 15 years. Scottish Conservative net zero and energy spokesman Douglas Lumsden said: 'Wind power is an important part of our energy mix, but it is not on its own enough to provide affordable power and energy security. Scotland will only prosper with a realistic energy policy that draws on nuclear, oil and gas and renewables - and only the Scottish Conservatives are committed to that. The hostility of both the SNP and Labour governments to North Sea oil and gas is costing an estimated 400 jobs a fortnight and increasing our reliance on imported fossil fuels. If they care about Scotland's interests, these two left-wing parties should ditch their opposition to our existing energy sector, embrace a mix of solutions and heed Kemi Badenoch's call to ditch the energy price levy.'
Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes said: 'Ministers have given the Berwick Bank wind farm application extremely careful consideration. The decision to grant consent to Berwick Bank is a major step in Scotland's progress towards achieving net zero and tackling the climate crisis, as well as supporting national energy security and growing our green economy. It is also an important decision for Scotland's renewables sector, and this investment will be further built upon through the delivery of Scotland's significant future pipeline of offshore wind projects under the ScotWind and the Innovation and Targeted Oil and Gas (INTOG) leasing rounds.'
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