Borders wind farm gets go-ahead

The go-ahead has been given to a wind farm in the Scottish Borders which is expected to power 66,000 homes – more houses than are actually in the county. The […]

The go-ahead has been given to a wind farm in the Scottish Borders which is expected to power 66,000 homes – more houses than are actually in the county.

The 48-turbine Fallago Rig wind farm will have a generating capacity of up to 144 megawatts and has been developed by North British Wind Power.

Scotland’s Energy Minister Jim said: “The Fallago Rig site in construction is expected to create around 600 jobs and will represent a significant boost to the local economy. Once up and running the wind farm is expected achieve carbon saving of thousands of tonnes of carbon dioxide each year.”

Mr Mather explained that a Fallago Rig Environmental Fund has been set up to provide £240,000 each year for local environmental improvements and sustainable development projects.

He also stressed that in giving consent for the farm he had “put in place a series of conditions to protect the outstanding natural habitats and landscapes and minimise disturbance to communities”.

“I am confident that Fallago Rig will be a centrepiece of Scotland’s renewables legacy,” he added.

“I am delighted the result has seen co-operation with all concerned, and I look forward to seeing it become a reality.”

The Scottish government’s wants 80% of its electricity demand to come from renewables by 2020. There is currently over seven Gigawatts of renewable capacity installed, under construction or consented around Scotland and the government’s Energy Consents and Deployment Unit is processing 41 applications for energy projects across hydro, onshore wind, biomass and clean technologies.

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