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WIND POWER: Prime Minister Erna Solberg received clear messages when she invited opponents of wind power in Haramsøya to a meeting in Ålesund on Tuesday afternoon. Photo: Terje Bringedal
ÅLESUND (VG) Prime Minister Erna Solberg met desperate opponents of wind power on Tuesday. You heard about a community feeling run over.
There has been such a strong wind power storm on Haramsøya in Ålesund municipality that the police introduced a residency ban in parts of the island for the committed protesters.
In late October, the fight moved to court; opponents in the group “No to wind turbines in Haramsøya” sued. The group has made several allegations of errors in the process and against developer Zephyr.
READ ALSO: The storm in Haramsøya
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Erna Solberg visited several companies in Sunnmøre and ended the tour in Ålesund, where she met with the leaders of the action group “No to wind turbines in Haramsøya”, headed by its president Birgit Oline Kjerstad.
The task force has argued, among other things, that the risk of landslides has not been sufficiently investigated, that the noise and wind measurements are not good enough and that neither they nor the inhabitants have been able to speak in the process of query.
– We are pissed off!
The setting for the meeting was neither windmills nor wind in the hair, but a meeting room in a downtown hotel.
– We are angry, also with the government, because Solberg and his ministers have decided not to touch the old licenses, Kjerstad told VG before the meeting.
Occasionally, incitements and personal attacks have been promoted in the heat of battle. She distances herself from this, but is very clear about it:
– It is important to understand that great pain generates anger. The feeling of powerlessness and not being heard is a democratic problem.
She is referring to what they believe to be a series of formal errors, including that licenses have been changed four times, without the affected person being notified or given a chance to comment.
– The township and county township said no, but a license was still issued. We experienced that the impact assessment was taken very lightly, when it comes to local considerations.
– Great respect for the authorities
At the meeting, she and other representatives of the task force presented factual information about how they view the case.
Solberg wanted to know why it took time before the task force was established.
– We had great respect for the authorities. We thought it was impossible for us to do something about it, Kjerstad said.
After the meeting, he answered what they expect Solberg to do.
– We know that you cannot say anything about the trial, but we hope that you will listen and understand us. We don’t give up until they finally listen to us. Local democracy and municipalities are on the sidelines.
the: Eleven people entered during the action on the ferry to Haramsøya
Solberg expressed great understanding, but didn’t give much.
– I understand your experience of not being heard. We have recognized that the way licenses have been handled has not been good enough. Municipalities and counties need to be more involved. We will use this as a basis in the future. The problem is the licenses that have been granted, says Solberg, and he gave a signal that he would not take a position on this license, which has now been granted.
At the end of March, the Ministry of Oil and Energy approved the construction of the power station with eight wind turbines in Haramsøya, on the outskirts of Ålesund.
But the process has been long: the Ministry maintained the approval of NVE, which was already given in 2008.
In a letter to Sunnmørsposten, developer Zephyr responded to the action group’s allegations.
Third test in no time
E24 has written that this is the third case against Norwegian wind turbines in a short time. The first two ended in losses for opponents and the developers were allowed to continue building their wind turbines.
In the first case, the Motvind organization had called for a halt at the Vardafjell wind farm in the Sandnes municipality, but they lost and had to pay NOK 1.3 million in legal costs.
In the second case, the Jillen-Njaarke reindeer herding district had sued the developers of the Øyfjellet wind farm in Vefsn municipality. They also lost and had to pay NOK 1.8 million in legal fees.
