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December
18, 2005
Property prices will be hit by wind farm,
claims pressure group
The
group fighting a proposed wind farm on the outskirts of Burnham-On-Sea
has released the findings of a survey which appear to back up
claims that property prices in the area will be hit if the development
goes ahead.
The
'kNOll to Windfarm' action group says a 2004 study by the Royal
Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) demonstrates that the
Edithmead development would be bad for property prices in the
area.
 The
RICS study on the impact of wind farms on property values found
that, on average, 60 per cent of chartered surveyors with experience
of house transactions near to such farms report they negatively
impact house prices. In the south west, this rises to a high of
77 per cent.
The
study adds: "The purpose of the study is not to endorse or
criticize wind technology, but rather to gauge professional property
opinion about its impact on both residential property and agricultural
land values."
"The
study focussed on those responses from surveyors with experiences
of property transactions affected by wind farms, analyzing the
data at both national and regional levels."
Andrew
Manning, spokesman for KNOll to Windfarm, says: "The findings
are clear to us. Property values are likely to fall as a result
of the proposed commercial wind development at Inner Farm."
"What
is particularly worrying to us is that many wind farms in the
UK are located in areas where there are relatively few residential
properties, not close to towns and villages such as Burnham and
Brent Knoll, where there are far more properties to be affected."
"The
big question for the residents of Burnham-On-Sea, Brent Knoll
and their surrounds must surely therefore be not whether values
will fall, but by how much?"
Ecotricity,
the Gloucestershire-based company behind the proposals, is preparing
to submit a planning application for the turbines which will produce
enough electricity to power 8,000 homes. It is the third wind
farm proposed for the area.
RELATED
LINKS:
Wind farm group pushes
green agenda
Ecotricity holds wind farm open day
New action group formed to fight wind farm
Council leader
slams plans for wind farm
Huge new wind farm proposed
for Edithmead
Ecotricity Web site
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