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Summer 2003Mersey Wind Farm Gets Government BackingThe Government has given SeaScape Energy the go-ahead to build Merseyside's first offshore wind farm. Work will start on the 30 turbine Burbo Offshore Wind Farm in 2005. Project Manager Adrian Maddocks said: "This is great news and means we can drive forward our vision of providing clean, renewable energy in the UK." The project, named Burbo Offshore, will be sited just off the Burbo Bank, a large sandbank near the entrance to the River Mersey, and will be more than six kilometres from the coasts of Crosby and New Brighton after an extensive public consultation exercise. "We have worked very hard to ensure the project will have as little visual impact as possible," said Adrian. The consents were granted following the Government's consideration of SeaScape's Environmental Statement, a comprehensive document which outlined the proposal and included research and environmental impact assessments into areas such as the effects on marine and bird life and the visual impact of the development. "All the research was carried out by independent experts and we consulted more than 20 specialist groups ranging from English Nature and the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust to the Port Authority and river users," said Adrian. As part of SeaScape's consultation process members of the community on both sides of the Mersey were asked for their views at a series of public events. "We found that more than 90 per cent of people who visited the events were in favour of the project," said Adrian. "This kind of support is a great testament to the people of Merseyside who have embraced renewable power as the future and welcome this exciting, new industry to the region." Costing more than £100 million, Burbo Offshore will have a total output of 90 Megawatts and provide enough power for more than 72,000 homes. Adrian said: "The UK is still in the earliest stages of offshore wind energy development but Burbo Offshore and the country's other projects will allow us to take a major leap in terms of technological advancement and the next generation of sites will provide even more clean, renewable energy to help power our homes and industry across the UK." For further information contact Roger Kenyon or Richard Edwards at Kenyon Fraser on 0151 706 9966 or visit www.seascape-energy.co.uk Copies of the Environmental Statement and the non-technical summary are available to download from the Seascape energy website at www.seascape-energy.co.uk
For more information about wind farms and wind power take a look at these websites:
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