Welcome to Country Guardian’s website We are a UK-wide conservation group which has campaigned against industrial wind turbines for nearly 20 years, since the first UK windfarms appeared in the Lake District. Initially the issue was mainly about landscape damage, but it soon became clear that: a) the technology of wind turbines is seriously flawed and, b) the environmental damage extends far beyond the landscape. This website contains a comprehensive database about wind energy, including the List of UK Wind Farm Action Groups. This contains links to over 230 UK Windfarm Action Groups as well as international links, and well-researched articles about all aspects of windfarms, news links etc.

At the start of 2010 we have come through a six month barrage of news about "Climate Change" and the "Energy Crisis". We have had Ed Miliband's plan to quadruple the number of UK windfarms and we have had the Copenhagen Conference which was was a disaster. In Country Guardian we were extremely encouraged by the publication in October of Dr John Etherington's book The Wind Farm Scam, which been so successful that it has had to be re-printed twice.

Anyone concerned about the damage being done to the environment by this ineffective and destructive technology should buy this book and circulate it as widely as possible

The WindFarm Scam
Preface "The mountains of Powys and Cardiganshire carry what from a distance looks like a golgotha of gibbets" Simon Jenkins . The Times , 15 February 2002. "In late 2004 Country Guardian commissioned me as an independent consultant to write a revised version of The Case Against Windfarms, an undertaking that inspired and prepared the ground for this book". Dr John Etherington.
Introduction. "Electricity generated generated by modern industrial wind turbones has many failings, all of which can be traced back to the physical laws which govern air movement and limit the energy that can be extracted from the wind. The huge size of the machines which make them so inappropriate in the countryside is also is also a consequence of those same physical laws".
1. Wind Turbines A chapter which describes the technology used in the design and construction of wind turbines, including the reasons why design is always in the direction of "bigger and higher", and why this puts stresss on the structure which can compromise safety.
2. Wind-generated energy. This covers the conversion of wind into energy, the reasons why wnd turbines produce only about a quarter of their "installed capacity
3.No wind, low wind - intermittent generation This is the biggest issue cururently. "It could take 50 gigawatts of renewable energy generation to meet the EU target. But it would require up to 90% of this amount as backup from coal and gas plants to ensure supply when intermittent supplies were not available. That would push Britain's installed thermal [non- renewable] powerbase from the existing 76 gigawatts to 120 gigawatts. E.ON UK, quoted in The Guardian, 4 June 2008)
4. Financing the impossible "We have ...introduced Renewables Obligation for England and Wales in April 2002. This will incentivise generators to supply progressively higher levels of renewable energy over time. the cost is met through higher prices to consumers....By 2010 it is estimated that this support(RO) and Climate Change Levy(CCL) exemption will will be worth around £1 billion a year to the UK renewables industry" (DTI 2003 Energy White Paper)
5. Do wind turbines abate carbon emission? "Harnessing the natural power of wind is essential to tackle global warming (Yes2wind website)" "The current 'Dash for Wind' could actually make the situation worse" (UK Power 2004)
6. Landscape degradation and wildlife "The Government's thesis that the countryside and upland and coastal Britain is"worth sacrificing to save the planet" is an insult to science, economics and politics. But the greatest insult is to aesthetics. The trouble is that aesthetics has no way of answering back2 (Simon Jenkins, The Times, 24 October2003)
7. Noise, shadows and flicker The sound of a wind turbine generating electricity is likely to be about the same level as noise from a flowing stream about 50-100 metres away or the noise of leaves rustling in a gentle breeze (BWEA website.) E.ON has today announced that it no longer intends to continue to develop an eight turbine windfarm near Ferndale because of concerns that the design could potentially pose a noise nuisanse to nearby homes (Press release 2 July 2008)
8. Danger and Nuisance "The trend is as expected - as more turbines are built, the more accidents occur. Numbers of recorded accidents reflect this, with an average of 66.9 accidents found per year from 2002 to 2008 inclusive, and only an average of 16.0 accidents found per year in the previous seven years (1995-2001 inclusive). With few exceptions, before about 1997 only data on fatal accidents has been found. There is a general trend upward in accident numbers over the past 10 years. This is predicted to escalate unless HSE make some significant changes - in particular to protect the public by declaring a minimum safe distance between new turbine developments and occupied housing and buildings (currently 2km in Europe), and declaring "no-go" areas to the public, following the 500m exclusion zone around operational turbines imposed in France." Caithness Windfarm Information Forum
9.Property, tourism and employment "I do not believe any prospective purchaser would want to inhabit the property, or, indeed in the current climate, whether any mortgage lender would be prepared to lend...." (Munton&Russel, Estate Agents, Spalding, 2008)
10. Misrepresentation and manipulation Wind power has been promoted for politico/environmental reasons and wind developers have benefited from substantial subsidies, leading to exaggerated claims. A reality check is needed. (ABS Energy Research (2006) ABS Windpower report)
11. Climate change and Kyoto - Is it all necessary? "There is no opinion, however absurd, which men will not readily embrace as soon as they can be brought to the conviction that it is generally adopted" (Arthur Schopenhauer) "It is socially unacceptable to be against wind turbines..." (Ed Miliband)
12.Epilogue "The Highlands are being humiliated by wind farm developers who insist they are saving the environment. they lie; they are here to make a profit. Wind farms produce very little and intermittent electricity. Most of the time they do not work. How can the blade of a bulldozer ripping up 6,000 years of beautifully preserved archiology be saving the environment?. How can the turbine blades smashing a golden eagle to bits be saving the environment? How can the government of Scotland destroy such a prize? And use public money to do it?. (Malcolm Rider, geologist 2009)
Other Key Articles and Reports
Facts About Wind Power : Carbon dioxide ‘savings’ from wind farms: Both by By Dr J M Hall © Wind Energy: Facts and Fiction A half truth is a whole lie J.A. Halkema About the Author: J.A. Halkema (M.S.E.E.) is an authority on the subject of energy. A retired electrical engineer, after graduating from the Technical University in Delft he worked for the international company Brown Boveri Nederland, now Asea Brown Boveri (ABB).   Wind Report 2005 - E.ON Netz "There is therefore a risk that even simple grid problems will lead to the sudden failure of over 3,000MW of wind power feed-in. In this case, the reserves maintained in the Integrated European Transmission System, in order to cope with problems, would no longer be adequate to safely tackle such failures. At the present time, it is not known how to confront this risk" Wind power in Denmark The true story of Denmark's "success with wind energy", regularly updated By Dr V.C. Mason (December 2008 ) © EPAW (European Platform Against Windfarms) A new Europe-wide organisation witha campaign to "STOP THE USELESS & DESTRUCTIVE WINDFARM PROGRAM". The Wind Rush The UK Government is obsessed with wind power above all other renewable technologies. This "Wind Rush" is being fuelled by absurdly inflated subsidies, paid for by electricity consumers. The following 'Wind Rush Files' track the negative impact of wind farms as they become daily more evident 1. The risk to aircraft radar and navigation systems 2. The sheer technical ineffectiveness of wind turbines in reducing CO2 emissions 3. The alternatives that are available 4. Climate 5. Planning 6. CO2 Emissions 7. The Safety of Windfarms 8. The Economics of Windfarms
Key Links to UK wind farm information sites which are concerned to sapread the truth about wind energy www.warmwell.com/windfarms.html This page monitors significant news items about windfarm developments in the UK and the mounting hostility to them. ind Watch: Industrial Wind Energy News http://www.wind-watch.org/news/?s=England "These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They are the products of the organizations or individuals noted". This is a USA-based site which pulls together world-wide news. To pull out news about Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland or any other country- just insert the name after ?s=

The Campaign

Country Guardian www.countryguardian.net. This website has been re-structured to fall in line with structure of The Wind Farm Scam Contacts and Background.Country Guardian is the only anti windfarm organisation covering the whole of the UK, and was founded in 1991. Country Guardian's Policy Membership Form List of UK Windfarm Action Groups. This list contains contact data, including websites and email addresses of over 230 WAGs International Links The Case Against Windfarms "In late 2004 Country Guardian commissioned me to write a revised version of the Case Against Windfarms, an undertaking that inspired and prepared the ground for much of this book" John Etherington. OpenView Online - Number 55 Autumn 2009 [Note - the OpenView booklet has been replaced by OpenView Online -ref. Number 55]

 

The Wind Farm Scam - Publication/Sales The publishers Stacey-International are offering groups and individuals opposing wind farms the following special rates :- 1 copy - £7.99 per copy + postage. 2-4 copies  - £6.99 per copy + postage. 5 copies and over - £5.99 per copy + postage IMPORTANT -  Special rates available ONLY via this email address : marketing@stacey-international.co.uk Please note - owing to sustained demand First and second printing sold out.....third edition now available Also available through bookshops and on-line email ISBN:978 1905299 83 6 John Etherington, The spectre of global warming and the political panic surrounding it has triggered a goldrush for renewable energy sources without an open discussion of the merits and drawbacks of each. In The Wind Farm Scam Dr Etherington argues that in the case of wind power the latter far outweigh the former. Wind turbines cannot generate enough energy to reduce global CO2 levels to a meaningful degree; what’s more wind power is by nature intermittent and cannot generate a steady output, necessitating back-up coal and gas power plants that significantly negate the saving of greenhouse gas emissions. In addition to the inefficacy of wind power there are ecological drawbacks, including damage to habitats, wildlife and the far-from-insignificant aesthetic drawback of the assault upon natural beauty and the pristine landscape, which wind turbines entail. Dr Etherington argues that wind power has been, and is being, excessively financed at the cost of consumers who have not been consulted, nor informed that this effective subsidy is being paid from their bills to support an industry that cannot be cost efficient or, ultimately, favour the cause it purports to support.   Reviews of The Wind Farm Scam Wind farms - Is there a hidden Health Hazard? Dr. Nina Pierpont began seeing patients in her clinic suffering from many debilitating symptoms and found a common thread among them: All lived near a new wind farm. Now, she's written a book about the condition. Details at http://www.windturbinesyndrome.com/?p=5116 Watch this superb video of a presentation by Dr Mike Hall, in support of the Cartmel Valley Turbines Windfarm Action Group. It covers a wide spread of information about the windfarm threat. Turbine Explosions and Fires A Danish wind turbine suffers a brake failure, and collapses near Hornslet, Denmark, 22 02 2008 www.youtube.com/ watch?v=sbCs7ZQDKoM&feature =related Wind turbine burns near Hamburg http://www.blot-online.org/images/stories/uelzen%20turbine.pdf The turbine generator could be seen widely as a huge burning torch....... (see photo and report above) Windfarm Accidents Website Caithness Windfarm Information Forum Go to www.caithnesswindfarms.co.uk for the definitive database of wind turbine accidents The unacceptable height of wind turbines - A Scale (1:100) model of a proposed wind turbine, 126 metres high, with Hempnall church (Norfolk), people, cars and small trees/shrubs ©Landscape Architect, Howard Bolton, with permission [Good News - 09 December 2009 An energy firm hoping to build a windfarm on the edge of a Norfolk village yesterday lost an appeal bid aimed at overturning a decision to refuse the plans. Diss based Enertrag UK had hoped to overturn a planning decision by South Norfolk council which had refused permission for the firm to build seven 125m wind turbines at Hempnall last August. The plan had been turned down on the grounds it would have an impact on the character of the area and be detrimental to local listed buildings.] Letters, Daily Telegraph, 4 September 2007 Sir, There is an old saying: "No one ever built a windmill if he could build a watermill." The wind is an unreliable source of power. It seldom blows steadily and sometimes not at all. The power generated by the wind varies with the cube of the wind speed. That means that if the wind speed drops from 40mph to 20mph, the power output does not drop by 50 per cent: it drops by 87.5 per cent. At 10mph, the wind produces only 1.56 per cent of the power generated by a 40mph wind. The wind can never become a major source of power. Norman Plastow, Hon Curator, Wimbledon Windmill Museum , London SW19.

 

This is a duplicate of a Digital Negative taken on a Nikon D2X camera, with a Sigma 50-500mm f/4-6.3EX DG HSM lens, of one of the 42 massive turbines at Blacklaw Wind FarmSouth Lanarkshire, Scotland, which rise to a height of 110 metres to the tip of the blades. The picture was taken from a distance of about 4/5th of a mile from the village centre of Forth on the B7016 road looking NW.