Airport taking steps to reduce windfarm impacts

Bosses at Blackpool Airport are taking steps to ensure proposals to bring windfarm cables ashore on the Fylde coast do not impact its operations.

Plans for the Morgan Morecambe Offshore Windfarm in the Irish Sea would see power generated and then connected to the National Grid via a cable which would land at a site near the airfield on Squires Gate Lane.

The cable would then travel underground across Fylde borough towards Newton before crossing the river Ribble to a sub-station at Penwortham.  There would be two sub-stations between Freckleton/Kirkham/Newton.

The issue is raised in an annual review of the Blackpool Airport Enterprise Zone due to go before a meeting of the council’s executive on Monday March 17.

The report says: “The Enterprise Zone Team is engaged with the developers of a number of offshore wind farms, whose proposals will impact the Enterprise Zone and in particular Blackpool Airport.

“Blackpool Airport will engage its own specialist consultants in respect of work to mitigate short term impacts on the airport operation and in respect of any negotiated compensation.”

The airport will also be represented at forthcoming hearings due to be held by the Planning Inspectorate, known as Development Consent Order (DCO) Inquiry Hearings.

Blackpool Council, which owns the airport, will also be engaging specialist legal and surveying consultants to safeguard its interests and negotiate compensation for any loss or lasting impact relating to the transmission cable routing.

The windfarm cable scheme has sparked controversy with a number of protests already held, while neighbouring Fylde Council is asking for more consultation.

It says this would allow alternative routes for the cable to be considered which would have less of an impact on the environment.

A spokesperson for the Morgan and Morecambe Offshore Wind Farms Transmission Assets has previously said  “Transmission projects of this scale and importance can’t be delivered without potential impacts – but we have sought to avoid and minimise these.”

They added: “We recognise there are ongoing concerns about our plans, and we welcome the forthcoming examination of our application. This will provide another opportunity for people to have their say as our proposals are considered thoroughly and independently.”