- Beinn an Tuirc windfarm
Beinn an Tuirc
wind farm inArgyll ,Scotland has 46 turbines with a total generating capacity of 30.36 MW, and is operated byScottish Power . [cite web| url=http://www.scottishpower.com/Casestudies_803.asp| title=Corporate Responsibility: Case Studies| work=Scottish Power| accessdate=2008-04-05] It was commissioned in 2001 and started operation in 2002. It cost £21 million to build. The turbines were built Danish companyVestas , which specializes in their manufacture. It is 10 miles (16 kilometres) north ofCampbeltown on the slopes of the Beinn an Tuirc, the highest hill on theKintyre peninsula.cite web| url=http://www.geo.ed.ac.uk/scotgaz/features/featurefirst7720.html| title=Beinn an Tuirc Wind Farm| work=Gazetteer for Scotland | accessdate=2008-04-08] Scottish Power was awarded a Queen's Award for Enterprise in 2006 for constructing Beinn an Tuirc andBlack Law wind farms with a "collaborative and responsible approach".cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/nolpda/ukfs_news/hi/newsid_4928000/4928578.stm| title=Scots firms receive royal honours| work=BBC News| accessdate=2008-04-08| date=2006-04-20] This referred to the company's practice of taking into account environmental concerns and the wishes of the local community in the wind farms' construction.One of the V47 turbines suffered a catastrophic failure in November 2007 when a brake problem led to the tower being bent in two. This was the first incident of an operational turbine tower collapsing in the UK. [cite news| title=Kintyre wind farm turbine bends and falls| date=2007-11-15| location=Oban| work=Oban Times] [cite news| url=http://www.campbeltowncourier.co.uk/news/fullstory.php/aid/4354/Bent_double.html| title=Bent Double| date=2007-11-16| work=Campbeltown Courier| location=Campbeltown| accessdate=2008-04-05] The farm was closed as a precaution, but soon reopened.
In an unusual move, Scottish Power has offered local rangers £30 for every
mountain hare they hand over. The idea is to re-introduce this species to an area near to the wind farm in an attempt to luregolden eagle s away from the turbines. TheRoyal Society for the Protection of Birds said, "Scottish Power's approach in creating this habitat that takes into account local biodiversity is to be welcomed." [cite news| url=http://news.scotsman.com/scitech/Gone-today-but-hare-tomorrow.3907166.jp| last=Brown| first=Craig| date=2008-03-24| title=Gone today… but hare tomorrow to draw eagles away from turbines| location =Edinburgh| work=The Scotsman]References
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