SNP approves giant wind farm despite backlash from Trump and RSPB
Scottish ministers gave consent to the Berwick Bank project, off the coast of East Lothian, where developers SSE Renewables want to construct up to 307 900ft-high turbines.
On a windy day, the project aims to generate enough electricity to power every home in Scotland twice over and around 17pc of residences across the UK.
Ed Miliband, the Energy Secretary, welcomed the decision, and the Government said enough offshore wind farms had now been approved to meet green targets.
But the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) said it was a 'very dark day' for seabirds in the area, over concerns tens of thousands will be killed by the turbines.
It warned that the wind farm lies close to Bass Rock, the world's largest gannet colony, and to the Isle of May, a national nature reserve that is home to a large colony of puffins, plus terns, gulls and many migratory species.
The charity said that the 'terrible decision' would make it easier to get planning permission for other offshore wind farms in the area and this could 'catapult' some species 'towards extinction'.
The announcement came only three days after Mr Trump used a visit to Scotland to warn that wind farms were 'destroying the beauty' of the country's fields and waterways.
Calling them 'ugly monsters' that produced 'the most expensive form of energy', the US president claimed he had limited the construction of 'windmills' in the US because they ' kill all your birds.'
The Scottish Government's own assessment estimated that the project will kill 261 gannets, 815 kittiwakes, 2808 guillemots, 66 puffins and 154 razorbills per year throughout the 35-year lifetime of the development.
SNP ministers said their decision to approve the scheme was subject to SSE Renewables producing a detailed seabird 'compensation plan' outlining how any 'adverse impacts' would be tackled. This will have to be rubber-stamped before construction of the turbines starts.
But RSPB Scotland said it was unclear how the 'compensation plan' would make up for thousands of seabirds being killed by the turbines.
Anne McCall, the charity's director, said: 'This is a very dark day for seabirds. It is a terrible decision on a really bad development.
'Berwick Bank would be catastrophic for Scotland's globally important seabirds which are already facing alarming declines.
'We are incredibly concerned that [the] Scottish Government have granted consent for a project which could catapult some of Scotland's most-loved seabird species towards extinction.'
Diarmid Hearns, the National Trust for Scotland's interim director of conservation and policy, said the decision was 'deeply disappointing'.
'More than that, we fear it will also be the cause of significant harm to the seabird colonies of St Abb's Head national nature reserve and elsewhere on the coastline,' he added.
Kate Forbes, the Deputy First Minister, said: 'The decision to grant consent to Berwick Bank is a major step in Scotland's progress towards achieving net zero and tackling the climate crisis, as well as supporting national energy security and growing our green economy.'
She added: 'We will continue to work closely with the developer and key stakeholders, including those working in fishing and conservation – to minimise the impact of the development on the marine environment and other marine users – and balance the needs of people and nature.'
Mr Miliband said: 'We welcome this decision, which puts us within touching distance of our offshore wind targets to deliver clean power by 2030 – boosting our mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower.
'We need to take back control of our energy and more offshore wind getting the green light marks a huge step forward in Britain's energy security and getting bills down for good.'
Mr Miliband wants between 43GW and 50GW of offshore wind by 2030, with only 16GW operational so far. The Berwick Bank project would deliver an additional 4.1 GW. That would bring the generating capacity of consented wind farms in the planning pipeline to 28GW – enough to meet Mr Miliband's target if they are all built.
SSE Renewables said the project has the potential to create 9,300 direct and indirect jobs in the UK at 'peak construction', around 4,650 of which would be in Scotland.
Stephen Wheeler, the firm's managing director, said: 'Berwick Bank has the potential to rapidly scale-up Scotland's operational renewable energy capacity and can accelerate the delivery of home-grown, affordable and secure clean energy to UK consumers from Scottish offshore wind, helping meet the UK's clean power ambition by 2030.'
Before his first term as president, Mr Trump lost a long-running battle at Holyrood and in the courts to prevent the construction of turbines off the coast of his golf resort in Aberdeenshire.
Although energy policy is decided by the UK Government, ministers at Holyrood have control over planning, including final say over which schemes get the green light.
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