LAST week’s correspondent Peter Matthews said that wind farms should be built on suitable sites.

They certainly should not be built close to people's homes, where low-frequency noise and other problems make life unendurable for residents. There has been too much of that elsewhere in the country, and Wiltshire Council is quite right to respect the interests of people adversely affected.

Unfortunately a particular section of society, which often seems to include Greens, Lib Dems and sundry nerdy townies, is determined to thrust wind farms down the throats of country folk at all costs, which is why there is rising anger in the country against the on-shore wind industry.

For some reason, turbinelovers never seem to live under a turbine, they always live miles from the nearest one. Peter Matthews might well be right when he says there may be power cuts in future, but don’t rely on wind power to save the day - turbines produce no electricity when the wind drops, and have to be disconnected when it blows too hard in case they explode.

Apart from causing nuisance to neighbours, wind power is inefficient, it needs 100 per cent back-up at all times (starting a cold power station puts far more carbon into the air than is saved by the turbines), is expensive (look at your fuel bill) and the ever-higher structures are a blot on the landscape. Why should tourists come to England to admire our turbines when they have plenty in their own countries? In short, wind farms are a complete nonsense.

A webpage, core strategy-focussed consultation gives full details of the council’s proposals. Please email your comments to spatialplanningpolicy@wiltshire.gov.uk.

IAN WELCH, Westbury