Perth residents shocked by size of ‘eyesore’ wind turbine as construction begins

Perth residents have blasted an ‘eyesore’ wind turbine as construction on the project begins.

The tower of the turbine, which is being built at Aviva’s Pitheavlis site, popped up in the past few days.

Residents in the Oakbank area have been left shocked by the size and scale of the structure.

Plans for the 70m-high turbine were approved by councillors in March 2022.

Aviva is building the turbine as part of its net zero ambition.

Aviva turbine ‘so unsightly’

Mary Fenton, 82, expressed shock when she saw the structure.

She told The Courier: “Oh my god, I can’t believe the size of it.

“I’m partially sighted and registered blind and even I can see how big it is.

“It’s so unsightly.

“I’m very much against wind turbines – I don’t like the look of them and I believe if you’re close you can hear them too.”

New Perth landmark ‘will be a bit of an eyesore’

Another resident said: “We moved here not long ago, but I wonder why they couldn’t use solar panels.

“It’s quite striking unfortunately and that’s it still without the blades.

“I think it won’t look very nice and it’ll be a bit of an eyesore.”

Another resident, whose property looks onto the turbine said: “I don’t like it at all.

“I knew it was going to be big, but that’s absolutely huge and it’s bigger than I imagined.

“I’m torn about the turbine because I know they’re trying to generate green energy.

“But it looks so out of place and it’s very noticeable.”

However, not everyone is against the scheme.

One local woman, who was walking her dog on Friday morning, said: “I don’t really care about it and we need them.

“This just seems to be a case of ‘not in my back garden’.

“I’m in favour of it, they simply need to be that big – we need to let things progress.”

An Aviva spokesperson said: “We have worked across the local community to ensure that all aspects of the project are taken into consideration.

“The turbine is an important part of our commitment to help reduce our impact on the environment and supports Perth’s ambition to be Europe’s first Net Zero small city.”