A call has been made for a temporary moratorium on further wind turbine consents amid growing concerns over the scale and distribution of windenergy developments across Scotland.
Local constituency MSP Finlay Carson has written to Energy Secretary Gillian Martin insisting the move is wholly necessary until greater clarity is provided on national and regional regeneration targets.
The Galloway and West Dumfries MSP argues that it is not just his constituency that has been swamped with planning applications.
He said: “My constituents are experiencing what many, including myself, believe as an unfair concentration of industrial-scale wind infrastructure, with little regard for local landscape, amenity or cumulative impact.”
The Scottish Conservative and Unionist MSP believes the Scottish Government targets for renewable energy generation are already overly generous.
The targets set for renewable energy generation, he explained, included a minimum of 20 GW of onshore wind and 11 GW of offshore windcapacity.
But these figures, based on government publications, suggest a combined generation capacity sufficient to power over 57 million people – more than ten times Scotland’s current population!
Mr Carson admitted that while the ambition to lead in renewable energyis commendable, there is a growing concern that the absence of regional or sectoral capacity limits is resulting in “disproportionate” impacts oncertain communities.
He added: “In light of this, I respectfully request that the Scottish Government clarify the total generation capacity target it is working towards for 2030 and beyond, including how this is relative to Scotland’s domestic energy needs and export ambitions.
“I also ask for you to confirm whether regional or local capacity thresholds are being considered to ensure a fair and balanced distribution of infrastructure across the country.
“Given the uncertainty on the volume of future applications I believe that the Scottish Government should implement a moratorium on new windturbine consents until such time as a clear, transparent framework is in place to guide equitable development."
The MSP insists this is not a call to permanently halt progress onrenewables – but rather a plea for strategic planning, fairness, and transparency.
“Communities must not be left feeling overwhelmed or ignored in the pursuit of national targets,” added Mr Carson. “I would welcome the opportunity to discuss this further and look forward to your response.”