Navitus Bay wind farm consultation ends

The wind farm would be located between Dorset and the Isle of Wight

A public consultation into a proposed £3.5bn wind farm off the south coast ends later.

Navitus Bay wants to build up to 218 turbines off Dorset, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.

The proposal has been criticised for its proximity to two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the New Forest National Park.

Anybody wanting to pass comment needs to do so in writing to the company before 17:00 BST.

Navitus Bay made changes to the plans, including reducing the number of turbines from 333 to 218, in December.

The maximum height of the turbines was also changed from 210m (690ft) to 200m (655ft).

Last month, project manager Mike Unsworth indicated that the wind farm could be scaled back again, depending on the outcome of a final public consultation and discussions with Natural England.

Campaign group Challenge Navitus has said the wind farm is "too large and in a wholly inappropriate location".

They are also concerned about its impact on marine life and coastal habitats in addition to possible noise and light pollution.

Mr Unsworth said a number of issues still needed to be addressed regarding the possible impact on ecology and the environment, as well as the visual impact.

He said the wind farm would provide enough renewable energy to power up to 790,000 homes and would create 2,000 jobs during construction and 200 long-term jobs in operations and maintenance.

A planning application is expected to be submitted in March next year.

If approved, construction is expected to start in July 2015.