Mont-Saint-Michel windmills halted

PLANS for four wind turbines 25km south of Mont-Saint-Michel have been thrown out by a court.

The court in Rennes said that the windmills – to be built on a land site at Tremblay (Ille-et-Vilaine) – would be visible from the Mont on a clear day and would disrupt the view from the Unesco World Heritage Site.

This is the sixth wind turbine project to have been refused permission, with the others being in the bay round Mont-Saint-Michel.

Each year the Mont draws 2.5million visitors and Unesco has called for the bay and the view from the Mont to be kept clear of visual disturbances which disrupt the serenity of the site.

The Rennes court said that the 140m wind turbines would have been built on land that was at 95m above sea level. This would mean they were taller than the 153m bell tower on the abbey on Mont-Saint-Michel and would be clearly visible from the site.
Photo: b3rny