- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 March 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 27 April 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the quadrupling of the amount of aggregate to be quarried from the site of the proposed wind farm at Whitelee Forest makes the addendum to Scottish Power's proposal to build a 322 megawatt wind farm at Whitelee Forest a material change to the original application.
Answer
We have considered this in consultationwith the three planning authorities and concluded that as the revised proposal constitutesa significant change to the original application, the applicant should be requiredto prepare an addendum to the environmental statement and that these changes shouldbe subject to fresh consultation.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 March 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 26 April 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to commission nationwide studies on the effect of wind turbines on the environment in order to comply with Council Directive 2001/42/EC, which comes into force in July 2004.
Answer
We have no plans to commissionsuch studies as the directive will apply to new plans and programmes started onor after 21 July 2004, or old plans if they will not be adopted before July 2006.Individual wind farm developments are, and will remain, subject to the requirementsof the environmental impact assessment regulations.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 March 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 26 April 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how it will measure emissions savings resulting from the generation of electricity by wind turbines.
Answer
Emissionssavings from wind power will vary depending upon the fuel that is displaced - displacement of coal will result in higher emission savingsthan displacement of gas. The most recently published data shows that wind generation in Scotland in 2002 accounted for 450 GigaWatthours (GWh). This level of output could reduce carbon emissions by between 45,000and 90,000 tonnes.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 02 April 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Andrew Welsh on 21 April 2004
To ask the Presiding Officer how many staff it employs (a) directly, (b) by secondment and (c) on a contract or consultancy basis to fulfil its media relations function.
Answer
The Media Relations Officeof the Scottish Parliament currently has (a) seven full-time and one-part-timemember of staff, (b) it has no seconded staff and (c) has one externalphotography contract which allows for consultancy work.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 March 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 20 April 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive at what level the decision was taken to extend the construction programme in the application for a wind farm at Whitelee Forest from 24 to 31 months without public consultation.
Answer
The applicant’s proposal to extendthe construction programme will be considered when the proposal comes to be determined.In the meantime the applicant has included this proposal in its amended environmentalstatement, which has been the subject of public consultation.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 March 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 20 April 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive what scientific evidence Scottish Power has provided to support the claim in its environmental impact assessment for the proposed wind farm at Whitelee Forest that peat removed during site construction can be successfully reinstated thus preventing it releasing large quantities of carbon dioxide.
Answer
This is one of a number of issuesthat remain to be considered by ministers when determining the application. No decisionwill be made until ministers are satisfied that appropriate measures are in placeto address the environmental and other impacts of the proposed development.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 March 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 20 April 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how many cubic metres of peat are now expected to be disturbed at the site of the proposed wind farm at Whitelee Forest following Scottish Power's identification of deeper and more extensive areas of peat within the site during further ground investigation.
Answer
The disturbance of peat is oneof a number of issues that remain to be considered prior to determination of theapplication by ministers. No decision will be made until these issues are resolvedor until it becomes clear that there is no solution available that meets the needsof all the parties involved.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 March 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 20 April 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive how it will respond to calls by South Lanarkshire Council and East Renfrewshire Council, among others, for it to ensure that Scottish Power submits separate planning applications with accompanying environmental assessments for the 16 sites it proposes to quarry to provide three million cubic metres of aggregate for the proposed construction of a wind farm site at Whitelee Forest.
Answer
We are considering whether thesesites should be treated as ancillary to the development under s.36 of the ElectricityAct 1989 and will advise the councils and those other parties that have raised thismatter once a decision has been made.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 March 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 20 April 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive when it became aware that the amount of aggregate to be quarried from the site of the proposed wind farm at Whitelee Forest would be increased from three-quarters of a million cubic metres to three million cubic metres and whether this was a factor in the consideration of extending the construction programme from 24 to 31 months.
Answer
This information was given tothe Scottish Executive and the three relevant planning authorities during a meetingwith Scottish Power in May 2003. The reasons for the request for an extension tothe construction period are included in the addendum to the environmentalstatement and all of these matters are still to be considered. A determination of the company’s application for consent is not expected in the near future.
- Asked by: Linda Fabiani, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 March 2004
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Current Status:
Answered by Lewis Macdonald on 20 April 2004
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will now institute a public inquiry into the application to build a wind farm at Whitelee Forest, in light of Scottish Power's recent acknowledgement that it underestimated the amount of aggregate to be excavated from the site by over two million cubic metres and South Lanarkshire Council's request that concerns raised by objectors and consultees be investigated.
Answer
There are a number of mattersconcerning this application that remain to be resolved. This is likely to take sometime. If at the end of this process there are still issues that cannot be resolvedwithout a public inquiry, then a public inquiry will be put in place.
