Fairness for wind farm neighbours

Wind farm developers are now offering Irish farmers up to €18,000 per year for a wind turbine to be built on their land.

These approaches usually occur with a knock on the door, an offer of an up-front payment, and sometimes a bottle of whiskey is produced once a confidentiality agreement is signed.

It seems like an attractive proposition, and a convincing salesperson can get a naïve landowner signed up quickly. Little does the Irish farmer know that, in the United Kingdom, landowners are negotiating amounts up to £40,000 (€50,000) for a wind turbine on their land.