The proposed Glentaggart Wind Farm is located within woodland to the south east of Glespin, South Lanarkshire.
It was part of assets that were owned by Scottish Coal, and is now held under option by Brockwell. The site has never been mined and is an area of woodland of variable quality, roughly bisected by an access track that services other local wind farms and developments. Access to the site for all vehicles, HGVs and abnormal loads would be via an existing private track running from the B7078 at Mid Rig.
We commenced our consultation process by establishing contact with various community councils in the area. This was followed by submission of a proposal of application notice to South Lanarkshire Council and other stakeholders. We are following this up with an online public exhibition in early November where members of the public will be able to attend to look at our plans, ask questions and provide comments. A further exhibition will be held in early 2022 which may also be an online exhibition depending on COVID restrictions at that time.
Story Map
In order to support our ongoing pre-application consultation, we have produced an interactive online Story Map which provides an informative overview of the proposals. The interactive story map includes layout drawings, visualisations and other useful information, and can be accessed using the following link - https://arcg.is/1DWjim0
If you were not able to attend the Pre Application Public Consultation event on 04 November 2021, the Story Map, as well as the project website, is a useful tool to gather information about the project and development process. We welcome you to use and share this Story Map.
- A link is also provided to a YouTube video of the presentation given at the event on the 4 November - click here.
- Comments made at this stage are not representations to South Lanarkshire Council. The opportunity for lodging representations will be when the application is formally submitted to South Lanarkshire Council for formal consideration.
- Plans presented here may alter before being submitted as a planning application.
We have also submitted a request for a scoping opinion to South Lanarkshire Council which outlines our proposed methods for undertaking the environmental assessment work required for the wind farm and inviting comment from statutory and non-statutory consultees.
The proposed development
The proposed wind farm would comprise up to 7 wind turbines, with a maximum height to blade tip of up to 250 metres. Other components of the development would include transformers at the base of each turbine (depending on turbine specification), underground cabling within the application site, a proposed 90m high meteorology mast or a LIDAR compound, tracks to allow access to each turbine, and an electrical sub-station and control room.
It is planned to operate a small quarry (a borrow pit) on site only during the construction phase for a period of around 8 months from where it is intended to extract material mainly for the construction of access tracks.
The wind farm would export electricity to a new grid supply point via overhead line, which is subject to a separate consenting process.
Environmental constraints such as the presence of nearby residential properties, ground conditions, slope steepness, watercourses, noise, birds and ecology, the presence of telecommunications links crossing the site, and the appearance of the wind farm will be taken into account in the design process. There is also a full consultative process in line with government guidance which will allow interested parties and stakeholders to provide feedback to our plans. Such feedback will be considered and responded to by Brockwell during the process of consultation.
Construction Operations
The wind farm would be constructed over a period of approximately 15 months. During this period any felling to be undertaken to accommodate the wind farm would be undertaken, followed by the installation of the wind turbines and associated infrastructure.
Lorries, including long and wide loads, would be used to bring construction materials to the wind farm. The use of the Mid Rig access allows these vehicles to be routed from the M74 motorway to the wind farm site without passing through local communities such as Glespin and Douglas.
The wind turbines would be erected to their full height using mobile cranes brought on site for periods during the construction phase of the wind farm project.
Stone from the planned borrow pit would be processed to form aggregate as and when required. The processing would involve the crushing and stockpiling of material on the edge of the borrow pit using mobile plant brought to the wind farm for parts of the construction period.