The hiatus in development activity at Nant y Moch may have put off one evil day, but now the Cambrian Mountains face another wind power proposal not much smaller, and just as damaging. The Mynydd y Gwynt wind farm, as currently described, would cover the hills between the Wye river and Hafren forest, north of the A44, with 27 x 3 megawatt turbines, each 125m high; the north-west-most turbine would be less than 2 kilometres from Pen Pumlumon Arwystli, part of the main Pumlumon summit ridge. The scheme is being promoted by a consortium including the landowners, who also run the Sweet Lamb car rally complex. It does not fall into any of the Strategic Search Areas, designated in the Welsh Government’s Technical Advice Note 8 as suitable for major wind developments. Its large size means that the application cannot be blocked by local or Welsh national planners; it will be examined by the UK Planning Inspectorate, and determined by the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change.

Mynydd y Gwynt has recently commenced formal consultations with statutory bodies and other stakeholders, and also invites the public to make their views and suggestions known. Formal consultations will run until 12th July 2013.

Details of the proposal, and of how to participate in the consultation, are on the Mynydd y Gwynt website. Note that the planning application process will be the same as for Nant y Moch: the present consultation is part of the pre-application process, and there will be an opportunity to object formally when the application has been finalised and accepted by the Planning Inspectorate.