Rampion wind farm: Objections raised over proposed extension

Plans to extend a coastal wind farm have drawn criticism from local campaigners, MPs and a parish council.

Owners of the Rampion wind farm, based off the West Sussex coast, have proposed building more than 100 new turbines.

A public consultation ended last week with a planning application expected next year.

The plans have been criticised for lacking detail on the location, height, and number of proposed turbines.

The owners RWE Renewables said the wind farm could could create renewable energy for more than a million homes.

Middleton-on-Sea Parish Council has formally objected to the proposal.

The council's chair, Shirley Haywood, said she does not want to see developers building "wind turbines that could be the height of the Eiffel Tower on our seascape without giving us a clear indication of what it will look like."

Colin Ross from the Protect Coastal England campaign group said if the plans go ahead the turbines would "dominate" the skyline, and suggested that they would be better placed in the North Sea.

Chris Tomlinson, development and stakeholder manager for the Rampion 2 project, said it would not be possible to build new turbines at the same height as the existing Rampion turbines because "they don't exist any more, because the technology has advanced at such a tremendous rate in recent years."

He told the BBC the new turbines would be "something between 1.5 and 2.3 times the height" of those in the current wind farm.

Local MPs have also expressed serious concern over the proposed Rampion 2 wind farm expansion.

Andrew Griffith, MP for Arundel and South Downs, said: "I am unconvinced that West Sussex is the best place for such a large wind farm expansion."

The MP for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton, Nick Gibb, said: "The visual impact of the turbines on our outstanding seascape would be hugely damaging, particularly to tourism, which is an important employer."

RWE Renewables said it would review feedback from the public consultation before submitting the height and location of the Rampion 2 turbines in a planning application next year.

Follow BBC South East on Facebook, on Twitter, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected].