Summary
IS SCOTLAND in the process of destroying its greatest asset? Film- maker Douglas Rae warned yesterday that the drive for green energy threatens "one of the last great wild locations of the world". With coal and gas reserves dwindling and as yet unresolved issues about the disposal of nuclear waste, Scotland needs to develop sustainable sources of power. But there is a price to be paid in terms of loss of amenity not only from the giant wind turbines that are springing up on our hilltops but also the huge pylons required to carry the power to where it is needed. Scotland's scenery is literally priceless. It is also the basis for the country's GBP4bn a year tourism industry. The power versus beauty debate is now firmly focused on 600 pylons, many of them 200ft high, which Scottish and Southern Energy needs for its proposed route down the spine of Scotland between Beauly and Denny. The company has dismissed requests to bury the cable as too expensive, but who has tried to put a price on the ancient Caledonian pine forests of Glen Affric or the stark beauty of the Ochil Hills?
A subsea transmission link to connect output to the national grid may be an option.See the full content of this document
Extract
Power and the Glory, or Gone with the Wind?
However, until there is a ...
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