Mynydd Llansadwrn Action Group

• Help Protect our Welsh Mountain Landscapes

The Threat to Brechfa Forest

• February, 2010

Current developer plans for Brechfa Forest

We believe that RWE-Npower plan to apply for permission to install 33 turbines at "Brechfa Forest West", the Mynydd Tre Beddau site uphill from the Alltwalis turbines. Due to the size of this installation the proposal will be handled by the Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC). 

RWE-Npower also plan for 11 turbines at "Brechfa Forest East", the area north of Abergorlech on the top of the Llanllwni mountain. The size of this proposal is such that it will be handled by the Carmarthenshire County Council planners. Click here to see a description of these proposals on Npower's website.

RES have applied for a monitoring mast at Banc Melyn near Bryn Llewelyn farm. This indicates that Npower and RES may be working together. Click here to see a map of the SSA G with the locations of the monitoring towers marked in red. 

• November 12, 2009:

Faulty blades at the newly installed Blaengwen (Alltwalis) wind farm

Local residents tell us that twelve blades will have to be replaced due to faults. The new ones will be slightly smaller than the originals. They were informed by the developers in a letter on Friday, November 6.

• November 1, 2009:

October 2009: Brechfa Forest Wind Farm "Community Liaison Group"

Npower, the developers for the nearly completed Blaengwen (Alltwalis) wind farm and two other proposed wind farms in the Brechfa Forest area, have hired a public relation firm, Quatro, to set up a ‘community liaison’ group. The stated aim of this undertaking is to establish a ‘useful two-way dialogue’ with the local community. But Quatro is working for the developers, so the bias is in favour of wind farm development in the Brechfa Forest area. It seems that the real, un-stated, purpose of the group is to try to smooth the way for the developers by making wind farms more palatable to local residents.

The terms of reference make it quite clear that the meeting was not to be a forum for support or objection and that ‘disruptive behaviour’ would not be tolerated. Perhaps Npower and Quatro felt these warnings were necessary in view of the strength of opposition to wind farm developments in the Brechfa Forest area.

The Mynydd Llansadwrn Group was invited by Quatro to attend the first meeting of the ‘Brechfa Forest Wind Farm Community Liaison Group', on 1st October. We refused to attend because we did not want to lend any credibility to such a group by our participation. However, that did not stop some of us from attending a protest demonstration outside the Pencader community centre while the meeting was being held.

About thirty people showed up to show their displeasure. There was model of a wind turbine, banners and music and no disruptive behaviour. There was an equal number of people inside the building attending the meeting. They were given a presentation of Npower’s vision for the future of Brechfa Forest as an industrial wind power installation, and then the meeting was opened to questions and answers. There was no opportunity to discuss an alternative vision for the Brechfa Forest. The date and venue for the next meeting has yet to be decided.

Background:

The ancient Brechfa Forest, according to the Welsh Assembly, is an ideal setting for giant wind turbines. If the Assembly has its way, about 40 to 50 turbines (about 90MW) will be built and the landscape of the Brechfa Forest will be changed forever. Click here to access the Forestry Commission's website on Brechfa.

The forest has been identified as Strategic Search Area G in TAN8. Click here to see the Ordnance Survey map of the forest and a map of the area as shown in the TAN8 document,  Click here to read more about TAN 8, the purpose of which is to adopt new planning guidelines that will facilitate the development of locations for wind turbines in Wales.

In a subsequent document issued by the Carmarthenshire planning department in 2006, the area for wind turbine development is extended outside the TAN 8 SSA G  (shown by the solid red line below). The extended area, as defined by the document and shown below by the dotted red line, covers 135 square miles, extending south almost to the A40, west of the A485 to Llandysul, north to the A482, and east to the B4802, near Talley. Obviously, wind farm development in this area will have an affect on all of us in Carmarthenshire. Wind turbines will be visible for many miles and bring dramatic changes to the local landscape. The Forestry Commission has chosen Npower as the preferred developer.

Click here for an article that appeared in the October 2006 edition of The Post, a local community magazine published by PostDatum, Llandovery, Carmarthenshire.

Latest information (July 2009) from Npower is that 32 turbines are planned for the Mynydd Tre Beddau site uphill from the Blaengwen turbines. Npower have had approval for a monitoring mast due to go up possibly in August. 

11 turbines are planned in the area north of Abergorlech on the top of the Llanllwni mountain. RES have applied for a monitoring mast at Banc Melyn near Bryn Llewelyn farm. This indicates that Npower and RES may be working together. Click here to see a map of the SSA G with the locations of the monitoring towers marked in red. 

On July 30, 2009, a meeting was held in Abergorlech to inform local residents of the threat and to discuss the situation. More than 100 people attended. On September 3, a second meeting was held in Llansawel with a similar attendance.

On Wednesday, November 4th, a third meeting was held at 7.30pm in the Brechfa Church Hall to inform local residents of the threat. About 50 local residents attended.

The mountain bike routes near Abergorlech on the Forestry land are being targeted by RWE- Npower for 11 of the 43 turbines on top of Brechfa Forest. They could be up to 145 metres high. Click here to join the blog on this subject.

It is now clear that the construction of turbines at Blaengwen near Pencader on the western edge of Brechfa Forest will facilitate access to the rest of the forest for developers. Click here to see photos of Blaengwen (now called Alltwalis) wind farm while under construction.

For more details contact the local campaign organiser at brechfaforesteag@yahoo.co.uk

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