No reprieve for 24MW Barrel Law

ABO Wind has been denied permission on appeal for the eight-turbine Barrel Law wind farm in the Scottish Borders.

The Directorate for Planning and Environmental Appeals in Edinburgh tossed out the up to 24MW project, which had previously been rejected by the local authority in March 2013.

The DPEA reporter ruled the project would have unacceptable impacts on the landscape around Selkirk and Hawick as well as running foul of aviation concerns.

The latter centres on RAF Spadeadam in the north of England, specifically the Deadwater Fell primary surveillance radar.

ABO argued that non-mitigated wind farms including EDF’s 36MW Green Rigg in the north of England and SSE’s under-construction 16MW Langhope Rig in the Borders had already been accepted within the radar catchment, but the DPEA agreed with the MOD that further projects would complicate operations at the RAF facility.

Tips at Barrel Law were set at 125 metres with 80 metre hubs.

Image: EDF’s 36MW Green Rigg lives alongside RAF Spadeadam (Graeme Fyall/Wind Prospect)