March 17, 2007

New Zealanders not excited about more wind turbines

Two recent articles by Helen Harvey in the Manawatu Standard, via National Wind Watch:

Turbine 'desecration' under fire

Maori have attacked plans for more wind turbines in the Tararua Ranges, saying turbines are weakening the mauri (life force) and mana of the hill tops.

He Kupenga Hao i te Reo (Inc) secretary Ian Christensen objected to the proposed Motorimu Wind Farm at the resource consent hearing in Palmerston North yesterday. It proposes 127 turbines for the hills behind Tokomaru and Linton.

He told the three commissioners that the Tararua ridge line had enough turbines and "further desecration of the ridgeline" with more would weaken mauri to a point where the "wellbeing of people would be in jeopardy".

"Manawatu has been desecrated by the pollution of human beings. We urge that the whole of the mountain range not be desecrated as well," he said. ...

Turbines 'intrusive'

A Massey University survey shows that 80 percent of people in Manawatu who live within 3km of wind turbines find them intrusive.

And 73 percent think the turbines are unattractive. ...

[Robyn] Phipps [who led the survey] was due to give evidence and present the report last night at the resource consent hearing into Motorimu Wind Farm Ltd's application to build a 127-turbine wind farm on the Tararua Ranges.

"[The survey results] could reflect the reality of living with wind turbines as opposed to the ideology of renewable energy." ...

wind power, wind energy, wind farms, environment, environmentalism, human rights