Letters / Communities need to own their own wind farms

I am fully sympathetic to the concerns which have been raised following views which were attributed to me in the Shetland Times last month. However these were not entirely representative of where I sit on the matter of turbines and renewable energy in general and I was very disappointed with how the interview I gave the Shetland Times was portrayed in the article.

It centred on wind turbines, and whilst the quotes were mine, they were taken out of context and carefully selected to misrepresent my views of renewable energy projects. I don’t expect everyone to agree with me, but I would like to be clear about my views.

To respond responsibly to the climate crisis, we need to make every effort to reach net zero and cut greenhouse gas emissions. The climate is changing at an alarming pace, making weather patterns more extreme and having a knock-on effect on our farmers and our food security – issues that are felt even more acutely in less developed countries.

However I also agree with Mr Brockless’ views on the siting of wind farms on peatland and the importance of retaining natural carbon sinks. The point of a robust planning system is that it is intended to look at benefits versus negatives in a scientific and objective way.

Any project is required to have an environmental impact assessment and the point of this is to ensure that we don’t do more harm than good in our attempts to reach net zero. As an opposition MSP I have no locus on planning and therefore no say in how the results of these surveys are carried forward to decision making.

One thousand jobs on Shetland currently depend on oil and these people are going to need alternative employment as oil starts to play a less significant role. When fuel security is also considered, it becomes clear that the challenges are simply too urgent to sit back and wait for a new technologies to be developed that are less intrusive and more acceptable to people than turbines.

If we do develop better and more acceptable technologies in the future, then of course it is possible for wind turbines to be dismantled and taken away. At the moment, that is an if, not a when, bearing in mind green hydrogen is also dependent on resources such as wind energy.

For now, turbines impact people wherever they are. It was suggested to me during the interview that we should only allow them offshore. This would be incredibly problematic for Shetland. Immediately before the interview, I’d been meeting local fishermen who are already being squeezed by offshore wind projects.

In the interview, I mentioned that I do personally like the look of turbines, but I never intended to be telling anyone what they should think. I recognise the wide range of opinions and there is no denying that their huge size has an impact on the natural environment.

For me, the biggest question is about community benefits – especially in the Highlands and Islands where we face the highest level of fuel poverty in the country. It is simply wrong that some people in Shetland can’t afford to put their heating on whilst hundreds of megawatts are produced outside their window. There must be more benefits for communities, and it is possible.

There will, of course, be some community benefit to existing projects, but they are tiny compared to the profits made by the developers. The amount communities receive has not increased since the early 2000s whilst energy costs have increased hugely. There must be fair community benefit.

One model is for the community to receive a share of the profits meaning benefits would increase with prices. We must also explore energy discounts for those who live beside these developments – it can be done, energy retailers already charge different tariffs.

However, I believe the best solution is for local communities to own and develop their own wind farms. I recently visited a community who have done this. They have been able to provide real community benefits: very low-cost childcare, pensioners clubs, and meals. They are looking at providing housing and have other creative ideas to expand. Everyone benefits and I’d love to see this model on Shetland in future.

There will always be differences of opinion about these developments, and there will be people who don’t agree with me. But I hope we all recognise the scale of the challenge we face and I’m sure we agree that those impacted should see tangible benefits.

Shetland has been at the forefront of energy generation for decades; innovation has always been part of that.  For a just transition to be a reality for Shetland we need to ensure renewable jobs are created and kept locally.

Rhoda Grant
Labour MSP for the Highlands and Islands

Sacrificing Shetland’s precious peatlands for poor temporary climate solutions