Britain leading the way in onshore wind farm applications – but there’s still room for improvement

The European Union’s Wind Barriers project released statistics last week examining the length of time it takes for onshore wind farm applications to be approved across the EU. According to the findings, the UK ranks as one of the quickest countries to approve applications. The study’s league table ranks Britain at no.8, taking just 26 months on average to approve an application, compared to a 42 mouth average across the EU. 

Britain is also reported as having one of the least bureaucratic planning processes, with applicants needing to contact an average of 15 authorities and organisations to obtain planning permission - compared with the EU average of 18.

While it is gratifying to see Britain performing well in the league table, there is still room for improvement in the application process for onshore wind farms. The study by Wind Barriers does not take into account the number of applications approved by local authorities in Britain versus the total number of applications. Typically, only a quarter of onshore wind farm applications are approved by local authority planning committees. Although these applications may be approved relatively quickly compared to the European average, there are many more that are simply turned down at the local authority level.

Ideally, the application process should be approved in 4 months (16 weeks). This is the typical period for permission for a large supermarket or housing estate to be built in Britain. With enough support for an application from the local community and MPs, applications can be approved much more quickly and the number turned down at the local authority level will reduce.

If you’d like to support wind energy in your local area ahead of the election, please visit our homepage and click on the pink button to locate and email your local candidate and support the I am a WIMBY campaign.

To show your support for a wind farm application in progress, click the green ‘support’ button on our homepage.