VILLAGERS from Lamerton and the surrounding areas packed a public meeting last Friday, in response to a bid to erect a 250ft high wind turbine just outside the village. Around 90 residents filled Lamerton Village Hall to learn more about the proposal for the installation of a 500kw wind turbine at New Venn Farm, east of Lamerton and north-west of Tavistock, ahead of a formal planning application. Chris Burchell, chair of the Lamerton Anti-Turbine Committee, said the meeting was being held to allow everyone to 'voice their views'. He informed residents that if a planning application for a wind turbine was issued by Mosscliff Environmental, those who wanted to 'fight' needed to understand that the process was long and could cost a 'vast amount of money'. 'This battle starts tonight,' he said. 'And if it does go to the planning stage, we are going to be battling for up to six years and it will be expensive — but there is power in unity. 'We are surrounded by beautiful rolling lands and why it's not being protected I do not know. It also draws tourists to our area like bees to honey. The lands should be protected. 'It is important to make your voice known and it must be in by May 22 — at this stage we have to jump up and down and get our voices heard.' Concerned residents asked about the application process, the noise level, and if there were other options for power generation. Lamerton resident Yorkie Malone said: 'This is the most disastrous thing that's happened to Lamerton. It's already happened in Lifton — if you drive to Lifton all you see is the church and a monster sticking up behind it.' The turbine proposed would produce almost 1,205MWh of green electricity per year which would be fed directly into the local grid, which Mosscliff Environmental said was equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of almost 370 average homes each year. The company said by installing the turbine, it would prevent the injection of around 685 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent into the UK's atmosphere every year. After the meeting a spokesperson for Mosscliff Environmental said the company was aware that some local residents had concerns regarding the New Venn Farm wind turbine application. 'Let me assure you that the unit will not be noisy — it will not cause a noise nuisance for local neighbours — let alone the village. It is a single, medium scale wind turbine — not a large wind farm. 'This is an entirely appropriate site. It is not located in an area of outstanding natural beauty, national park, or country park. It is not a World Heritage Site, nor does it have any special ecological designation or protection. 'This turbine is sighted in open fields on the outskirts of a village but will not be easily visible from the village.' West Devon and Torridge MP Geoffrey Cox has been involved in a long-running campaign both at Westminster and locally against wind turbines in his constituency. The MP said the proposal for the 250ft wind turbine in Lamerton has aroused the opposition of the majority of local residents. He said: 'It would be wholly out of place in so sensitive and historical a landscape and I hope that the developers will have the good sense to withdraw their application.' Details of the proposal can be found at http://www.mosscliff.co.uk/south-west-application-2.html">www.mosscliff.co.uk/south-west-application-2.html Feedback must be received by Thursday, May 22.