A wind of change is needed in attitudes to energy
For the uninitiated, the biggest wind farms to be built in the UK got planning go-ahead from Western Isles Council a fortnight ago – a decision regarded locally as an inexplicable act of betrayal by councillors. The RSPB is opposed because the turbines will wipe out golden plover nesting and shrink the bogs – locals are opposed because of visual intrusion and councillors voted yes to bring jobs, rent and community payouts to the islands.
The clock is ticking. In 15 years the existing fossil-fuel-fired power stations in Scotland will shut – and, ironically, the first important bit of investment may have to be an upgrade of the interconnector north to bring energy from England to Scotland. Yes, that's right. Scotland, the northern Kuwait of oil and gas and the Saudi Arabia of alternative energy, is set to become a net importer of energy. Clearly, oil is not going to disappear in our lifetimes. And with oil prices due to hit $60 a barrel the incentive is there to explore Scottish fields previously too marginal to touch. But mature oilfields need skilled, experienced staff and, according to the operators, those are exactly the guys set to retire from an industry where the average age is 51. Even if it hits $70 a barrel, skill shortages may make it hard to exploit new oil fast enough to meet home demand. The hard answer – the public must accept some Big Brother-sized wind farms somewhere. Wind operators must not put them where everyone objects.
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