Concerns voiced at meeting about southern onshore wind farm plans

Around 200 people attended the meeting about the plans

Concerns about the look and cost of a proposed £30m onshore wind farm project in the south of the Isle of Man have been voiced at a public meeting.

Reasons for Earystane and Scard being the preferred site were explained by Manx Utilities at the event.

Environmental consultants and politicians answered questions from some of the 200 people at the Arbory and Rushen Commissioners meeting.

Chief minister Alfred Cannan said the farm would improve "energy security".

More than £500,000 has been spent on the development of the project so far

Four or five wind turbines could be built at the site in a bid to produce 20 megawatts of energy by the end of 2026 to meet the government's climate change targets.

Consultants Wardell Armstrong outlined how factors such as travel access and the requirement for the turbines to be 1640ft (500m) from homes due to noise limit had narrowed down the potential sites.

The meeting heard a location at Slieau Managh, south of the Bungalow, had been ruled out as amendments to the TT course may have been needed to deliver turbine parts.

Anther site at the Round Table in the south was also previously ruled out due to archaeological issues, and Injebreck was also discounted due difficulties with accessibility.

A site at Druidale was deemed viable, but is not the preferred location because it would have a lower energy yield than Earystane.

Kirrie Jenkins said the potential scheme had already affected nearby residents

Nearby resident Kirrie Jenkins, who is a member of the local authority but has a predeclared position opposing the development, said the mental and physical wellbeing of some people who lived nearby had deteriorated because the "stress of their businesses and homes being affected".

Ms Jenkins, who lives 1640ft (500m) from the site, said she and her neighbours were not "being Nimbys", but were instead people who choose to live in that part of the island because they care about its environment.

Susan Jones said she would prefer to see an offshore wind farm scheme

Susan Jones from Dalby called for an island-wide referendum to be held due to the "environmental and financial costs" of the project to the island.

She said there had been some interesting information shared, and while she was a "big believer in green energy" she thought the island's needs would be better served by an offshore wind farm.

But Mr Cannan said the government would be "failing generations to come" if it did not move towards renewable energy and stressed that the current gas power station would become redundant in the next decade.

The government therefore had to be "serious and determined about energy security projects such as this", he said.

Speaking after the meeting, Mr Cannan said he understood the concerns that had been raised, but had also been approached by some residents who supported the project but did not speak out at the event.

People watched presentations on how the potential wind farm site was selected

Manx Utilities chief executive Phil King said the meeting had been "valuable" for the government-owned energy provider, as it was a chance to "really listen and feel" the concerns raised.

The company would take them on board to shape the scheme as it moved forward, he added.

A full Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is expected to be completed in 2025, when a formal planning application will be made.

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