Scottish Borders Greens fully support low-carbon energy and electrification. People deserve a good quality of life powered sustainably: a decentralised energy system, with a mix of renewable sources spread across the country. Local generation could meet much of our energy use, especially in rural areas, and let communities benefit from projects they organise and own.
That does not mean we support every wind farm and pylon scheme proposed. Many will only add to the existing centralised National Grid.
We strongly object to the rapid increase in planning permissions across the Borders for:
- onshore wind farms with turbines more than twice the height of Big Ben;
- around 60 miles of 400kV pylons, each about 47 metres (154 feet) tall, crossing the Ettrick, the Yarrow and the Tweed;
- battery energy storage sites on farmland around historic towns.
We object because of the damage to the environment, the landscape and farmland, but most of all because much of it is not needed. Scotland already generates more renewable electricity than it uses. Much of this new infrastructure exists to move power out of Scotland, making money for investors while doing little for the Borders households struggling with their bills.
There are alternatives. Local, small-scale energy is already working in the Borders:
- At Borders College in Galashiels, the UK’s first sewage heat recovery system heats the main campus building
- At the Philiphaugh Estate in Selkirk, an Archimedes screw draws water from the Ettrick Water to generate power
- The Wedale Bookshop in Stow is heated by a water-source heat pump using the Pennywhigham Burn.
Investing in projects like these, and in cutting how much energy we need, is how we get a fair transition that benefits Borders communities.
