Our Junction House Proposal
BT's site at Junction House Farm, County Durham is one of a number of potential sites for wind power development that BT is proposing throughout the UK.
The site is on privately owned land, west of Easington Village and the A19 and north of B1283 Durham Lane. Our proposal is for 3 x 2.3MW turbines with a hub height of 55m and a blade length of 35m, giving a total height of 90m. Planning policy supports wind energy development in this area.
Why has BT selected Junction House, as a proposed site?
Demand for energy in the UK has never been greater, yet it is now widely accepted that the non-renewable energy sources (i.e. coal, oil and gas), which are currently used to produce the majority of electricity in the UK, are finite in quantity and that their continued extraction and combustion is unsustainable and in part responsible for global climate change.
The UK Government has commitments on both climate change and renewable energy including a legally binding target of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 34% by 2020 and generating 15% of all our energy from renewable sources by 2020.
The Durham regional target for new installed renewables capacity (all sources) to 2010 is 82MW. The proposed development at Junction House comprises approximately 8% of the sub regional target. Existing and emerging wind turbine capacity in the sub region is estimated at approximately 126MW, exceeding the 2010 target. Importantly however, renewable energy targets set out in the RSS are indicative, they are not upper limits and there is some way to go before the Region’s minimum targets as a whole, to 2010 and 2020, are met.
The site is in close proximity to an area identified as a ‘broad area of least constraint for medium scale wind farm development’ in the emerging RSS.
Photomontages of the proposed turbines -
Viewpoint - Shotton Colliery
Viewpoint - Southerly edge of South Hetton
Viewpoint - Haswell to Hart Countryside Walk
Viewpoint - Easington Outskirts
Our commitment
We take our environmental and social responsibilities seriously and are investing in tackling climate change. We welcome the opportunity to openly discuss our wind proposals with the local community and other stakeholders. We would be delighted if you wish to express your support for Wind for Change as we all have a responsibility to protect the environment for future generations
Keeping in touch
If you have any questions you can get in touch with us through:
BT Wind for Change, PP HWD 170, PO Box 200, London, N18 1ZF
You can also contact the Local Authority directly:
Grant Folley, Senior Planning Services Officer, Development Services, Council Offices, Seaside Lane, Easington, Peterlee, County Durham, SR8 3TN
See a location map of the proposed site.
BT is an active and committed member of the business community in the North East
- We employ over 4,500 people in the region
- We spend over £15 million with local suppliers
- BT’s direct and in-kind spend on community activities in the North East region amounted to over £950,000 in 2007-2008
