COPIES of objections to a wind farm planned for Silton in north Dorset continue to pour in. Never have I had such an inundation, at least since the last wind farm application rejected, I’m delighted to say, for the village of Cucklington.

Both sites lie a mile or so outside my constituency but their scale is such many of those I represent would be affected by the blot on the landscape they would create.

The trouble is it remains a heresy to oppose anything pleased to style itself green, sustainable or environmental.

This despite the fact saving the planet has shifted from being a fringe lifestyle issue wrapped up with leftist, anti-capitalist mumbo-jumbo towards the mainstream acquiring the faculty of rational thought along the way.

I defer to nobody in my enthusiasm for alternative technologies. Even if you ar one of those who, despite all the evidence, are inclined to cling to the straw offered by climate change deniers, you have to accept the compelling geopolitical case for generating energy close to home. That is unless you are happy to allow gas-rich Russia or some of the world’s more unstable and colourful regimes the diplomatic advantage which goes with the turning of the tap.

It’s also ok if you are relaxed about the jobs in sustainable energy which stand to be created in the UK. However, it’s no good tipping wheelbarrows of cash at a modality - onshore wind - which will do little to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.

Of course energy companies are delighted to put up onshore wind turbines across what little remains of our unspoilt countryside - doing so is as cheap as chips and the risks are low. Great for investors.

By contrast, offshore wind and tidal power are far more risky and need much more cash up front. But we live on an island for goodness sake. Two things we have in abundance are offshore and wind.

Offshore turbines are capable of being structurally massive, benefiting from stronger and more consistent wind. They allow the vital side-benefit of fishery protection.

Onshore turbines are fishy too in the sense they offer a red herring to those seeking to end Britain’s love affair with oil and gas. Onshore wind farms are simply part of the inexorable concreting of our countryside. Be in no doubt, if the Silton application succeeds, the architects of this latest threat to our environment will be casting a covetous eye at a beauty spot near you.