I’m delighted to bring you some really good news, Hoddlesden moss has been saved following the decision to withdraw and application to build a windfarm on this sensitive and important moorland site. Tim Melling, our Senior Conservation Officer who has been working on the case, brings us up to date.
On the very day that Blackburn with Darwen Council were due to decide on the Hoddlesden Moss wind turbines, the application was withdrawn. The Council’s planning officers recommended that the planning committee should refuse the application, but committees do not always follow such recommendations.
Hoddlesden Moss - a view with cotton grass. Photo credit: Tim Melling.
There were four grounds for recommending refusal, but the first was an unacceptable impact on ecological and biodiversity impacts, making special reference to the West Pennine Moors SSSI. Another reason for recommending refusal was that the proposal does not have the backing of local communities. This is despite the applicant managing to drum up 556 letters of support. RSPB supporters voiced their concerns resulting in a staggering 904 letters of objection plus a further 300 on an online petition. So thank you all for your help with this.
A golden plover with a chick nearby. Photo credit: Tim Melling.
We object to very few onshore windfarms as we are generally supportive of renewable energy to counter the effects of climate change. But this windfarm really was in the wrong place. It was on healthy blanket bog with rare plants and nesting dunlin, golden plovers and curlews. The necessary drainage to install wind turbines here would have damaged the blanket bog causing it to release its stored carbon, whereas in its un-drained state it was actively removing carbon from the atmosphere. It would have been ironic if wind turbines had been allowed to damage a carbon-friendly blanket bog for the purpose of reducing carbon. So the dunlin, golden plovers and curlews are now free to continue nesting on this beautiful Lancashire moorland.
Some good news for curlews as Hoddlesden Moss is saved. Photo credit Tim Melling
Some of you may well have supported our campaign - huge thanks to you all. Just today I've blogged on the importance of protecting our best wildlife sites for curlews - we celebrated the great news that the West Pennine Moors (of which Hoddlesden Moss is an important part) had been designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest following years of work by local naturalists compiling the evidence - this decision is the cherry on the cake!
Fantastic news, it just shows what can be achieved when people get together to support our wildlife, they needed us and we delivered,well done to everyone concerned.