Appendix 2 – Letter from the East Hampshire Area of Outstanding Beauty East Hampshire AONB Office Queen Elizabeth Country Park Gravel Hill Area of Waterlooville Hampshire P08 OQE Outstanding Natural Beauty Telephone: (023) 9259 1362 EAST HAMPSHIRE Fax: (023) 9259 2409 Mobile: 07710 590863 E-mail: [email protected] FAO Guy Riddoch East Hampshire District Council Penns Place Petersfield Hampshire GU34 11 February 2004 Dear Sir Petersfield Project for Integrated Renewable Energy Deployment – Wind Turbine on Butser Hill As a follow up to the report by Econergy on the results of the Petersfield Study, it has come to our attention in the EHAONB office that your Council’s Development Panel will be considering a report that includes a proposal to erect a single wind turbine on top of the South Downs, possibly on Butser Hill. As I have yet to see the agenda I cannot confirm this myself, but in the meantime I have been asked by members of the Planning Panel to write and inform of their concerns on such a proposal. The East Hampshire Joint Advisory Committee is fully supportive of the Government's policy to promote the growth of renewable energy production, and welcomes the general thrust of the draft policy document PPS 22. However, as pointed out to the ODPM's office, whilst renewable energy schemes can bring undoubted benefits, they can also have undesirable impacts that need to be balanced against these general benefits. The Planning Panel have asked me to clarify that a single wind turbine comparable to size of the ones erected at Swaffham in Norfolk would be extremely prominent and intrusive if located on Butser Hill. The fact that the landscape is already scarred by the existing unsightly telecommunications tower located on Butser Hill, is not by itself a sound planning reason to erect a second incongruous structure, such as a wind turbine. As you will be aware, the South Downs is designated an 'Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty’ and is scheduled to become part of the proposed South Downs National Park. The current planning guidance on nationally designated areas is that renewable energy developments should not be allowed to compromise the objectives of designation (i.e. to conserve and enhance the natural beauty of the landscape). Therefore, it is considered that without further research to study the Page 1 potential for renewable energy deployment over a much wider area of search, including locations outside the AONB at a more co-ordinated regional level, the South Downs should be excluded from the proposals map on basis of harm to the natural beauty and landscape character of the area. The Guidelines for the South Hampshire Downs landscape character area set out in the Hampshire Landscape Strategy refers specifically to the need to maintain and enhance the spectacular panoramic views provided by the domed hilltops and sweeping contours of the prominent ridge line as part of the distinctive sense of place within and around the South Downs. Whilst a single wind turbine could in theory provide Petersfield with 10% of its installed electricity generation needs to comply with national targets, in practice it would be connected up to the national grid and there may be less harmful locations where wind turbines could be located to generate the electricity energy requirements for the district. In conclusion, without further research on a comprehensive basis to assess potential landscape impact and the weigh up the environmental, social and economic benefits of such a scheme against harm to the landscape quality of the area, the Panel wish to register their objection to the above proposal. It would be appreciated if you could pass on these comments to the Chairman of the Development Panel. If you any queries regarding these comments, do not hesitate to contact at the above address or email me on [email protected] if there are any further developments. Yours faithfully Reg Hawks MRTPI Planning Officer East Hampshire AONB Page 2 .