CAMPAIGNERS against a windfarm near villages in West Stirlingshire warn that house prices could plummet if the giant turbines are built on Ballindalloch Muir.
And their claims are backed by a JUDGE who ruled in court that windfarms can ruin the peace of the countryside and cause a drop in property values.
The Endrick Valley Action Group – who are campaigning against npower renewables’ plan to build a windfarm on Ballindalloch Muir only a mile and a half from Balfron – also point to a survey carried out by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) which claimed that windfarms caused property values to fall.
District Judge Michael Buckley awarded £15,000 damages to a couple who had bought a house in the Lake District in 2004 without being told by the sellers that a windfarm was going to be built nearby.
Judge Buckley said that the noise, visual intrusion and flickering of light through the blades of wind turbines reduced the value of the house they had bought by a fifth.
Judge Buckley said: “The effect is significant and it has a significant effect on the property. It is an incursion into the countryside. It ruins the peace.”
The couple who had bought the house – Barry Moon and Gill Haythornthwaite - told their local paper that their experience and the judge’s ruling gave the lie to claims by the windfarm industry that wind turbines did not damage property values.
EVAG also point to the RICS survey of the same year that found that 60 per cent of surveyors who deal with homes near windfarms said the turbines “decrease the value of residential properties”.
EVAG member, Gary Scott, from Balfron said: “The findings of the judge and the RCIS are very worrying for us and should be of concern to people living in Balfron, Fintry, Buchlyvie and surrounding area.
“There is a large body of evidence which suggests windfarms have a negative impact on the value of houses and property.
“This is something everyone should weigh up and take cognisance of when they are deciding whether they support the building of these monstrosities in the countryside so close to our homes.
“Given two identical houses at the same price, one with wind turbines on the horizon, which would you buy? No prizes for guessing that the twirling monsters would be a deterrent. But the British Wind Energy Association dismisses this damaging effect on house prices as a "myth about windfarms".
“I wonder how it will react to the news in Denmark's Copenhagen Post (July 30) that its government is drafting a proposal suggesting that "homeowners living in the shadow of the 150-metre giants be compensated for lost property value where values have been brought down by the presence of nearby wind turbines.
”All I would say to people is ask themselves the question – would they buy a house with a windfarm just a mile-and-a-half away?”
Gary added: “As well as the negative visual impact on the countryside and the threat to local house values we are very concerned about the health issues posed by these wind turbines.
“There are two schools and a children’s nursery only 1.3 miles from the proposed windfarm and even npower show on a map on their own website that they will be affected by the noise from the wind turbines.
“Medical studies have shown that low-frequency noise from windfarms can cause headaches, nausea, tinnitus and a lack of concentration.
“Ballindalloch Muir is not the right place for a windfarm and we will oppose npower’s plans.”
Anyone who is interested in finding out more about the windfarm proposal and EVAG can log on to our website www.evag.co.uk .
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