Wind Farms can cause interference to both analogue and digital TV signals.

Below are independent forecast figures for how many homes would be affected if a Wind Turbine was erected in either of two locations (suggested by the developer), labelled A and B on the map above. This has been obtained from BBC/Ofcom.

A Turbine in Location A would affect up to 9738 homes for whom there may be an alternative off-air service.

A Turbine in Location B would affect up to 8876 homes for whom there may be an alternative off-air service.

These figures were obtained from a BBC technical website that estimates the number of homes that may suffer interference.

This is the number of HOMES affected by building the turbines so the number of PEOPLE affected in the community will be much higher.

Because a Wind turbine will not always face in the same direction, the acre of sky swept by the rotors on each turbine could cause reception problems to different areas at different times - depending on the direction of the wind.

At the time of writing the developer has not ‘micro managed’ - as they put it - the exact locations of the turbines. So we have had to use data from the location of the existing anemometer and documents in the developers initial scoping report to generate Ordnance Survey Grid Reference numbers.

The BBC site states that “All television reception difficulties caused by the erection of wind turbines must be rectified at the cost of the wind farm developer.”

However even this is not always enough to resolve reception problems for both analogue and digital signals. As communities near Whitelee Wind Farm, East Kilbride found out.

Remedial action to improve reception problems is not always simple, cheap, nor it seems, always prompt. As residents in County Durham discovered in March this year.

‘Wind farm signals poor TV reception’ (From The Northern Echo)

So despite the official BBC figure for the Harborough area - between 8876 and 9738 homes - the developer claims;

“The windfarm is not expected to have a significant effect on existing telecommunications in the area. Television reception will be monitored during development, and any problems will be quickly remedied and paid for by Energy4All.”

(Source; Environmental Assessments page Gartree Coop website, as at 1745 hrs 7/4/09.)

So how quick is quick?

Will local residents have to prove their loss of signal and its cause.

Will Energy4All pay?

Or will the money eventually have to come from the new Co-operative Group that Energy4All intend to run the operation?

There is no guarantee that they would do so speedily and, as the BBC/Ofcom have stated, it may be impossible to rectify the poor reception.

The BBC site states 'Where a new development causes reception problems, we look to the developer to rectify these, and planning authorities sometimes require a legally binding commitment under Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, in order to enforce this at the outset.'

Will a bond be put to pay for repairs/upgrades before work starts?

It would be regrettable if the imminent switchover to digital were allowed to confuse this issue.

This development is simply too close to too many people.

References;

Emails from BBC/Ofcom with figures of the number of homes affected.

BBC/Ofcom Paper on Windfarms and Buildings affecting reception http://www.bbc.co.uk/reception/info/pdf/buildings_factsheet.pdf