Whinash Wind Farm: tourism concerns

8:52am Friday 15th April 2005

Cumbria’s lifeblood tourism industry will lose tens of millions of pounds and be forced to shed more than 6,000 jobs if the Whinash Wind Farm goes ahead, protesters have estimated.

Parliamentary candidates Tim Collins and the Rt Hon David McClean will tell the public inquiry that the wind farm will have a dramatic affect on the £1,000 million-a-year industry in Cumbria if passed.

The two have used the findings of a survey conducted by ‘Visit Scotland’ to gauge tourists’ reaction to wind farms. It found that 15 per cent would completely avoid areas with wind farms, while a further ten per cent would be “less likely” to visit.

If the 25 per cent is applied to Cumbria, the two say there will be 3.9 million fewer visits to the county, resulting in a loss of tens of millions of pounds and a massive 6,263 jobs.

They will also argue that the impact of the wind farm will be hugely damaging because of its location at the “gateway” of the Lake District National Park, visible from both the M6 and West Coast Main Line.

Although the figures are estimates, a survey by CTB in 1994 found 40 per cent of visitors cited the park’s scenery and landscape as the most important reasons for visiting.

Mr McClean and Mr Collins – who will be fighting to regain their seats in Penrith and the Borders and Westmorland and Lonsdale respectively - will also argue that, if built, the wind farm would jeopardise the chances of the fells under threat of becoming part of the Lake District National Park, a possibility that is currently being investigated by the Countryside Agency.

Their arguments will be backed by the CTB, which fears that the application will set a “dangerous precedent” in the areas lying just outside the protection of national park boundaries.

But the applicants behind the wind farm, Chalmerston Wind Power Limited, will set out to prove there is no hard evidence linking the 90 wind farm developments in Britain built since 1990 to a drop in tourism.

Instead they will argue that in some cases wind farms can become a tourist attraction in their own right.

They will also stress that the Countryside Agency is only in the early stages of an investigation into the possibility of expanding the park and that the wind farm would not necessarily hinder its inclusion.