AFTER leading anti-wind farm campaigns all over the world for the past 12 years, North-East environmentalist Dr David Bellamy now has a fight to stop turbines being built on his own doorstep.

Renewable energy specialist Banks Developments, of Tow Law, County Durham, has earmarked farmland near Dr Bellamy’s home, on the edge of Hamsterley Forest, for up to nine 110 metre-high turbines producing energy for 11,500 homes.

The Windy Bank scheme would cost up to £20m and would stretch from the forest’s southern boundary across fields towards the village of Woodland.

Four more turbines are also being proposed in the same area. Bolsterstone Innovative Energy is looking at siting four turbines closer to homes between the Banks site and Woodland.

Dr Bellamy said yesterday he would campaign against both wind farms.

He said: “Wind farms just don’t work. I have been fighting them all over the world since 1996 and I will fight this one all the way.”

Rob Williams, renewable projects director at Banks, said yesterday he expected opposition, but was confident the final scheme would have the least possible impact on residents.

He said the site had been chosen because of strong wind in the area and had been identified as suitable for development in the North-East England Renewable Energy Strategy document.

Letters are being sent inviting people to an exhibition of the plans, in Woodland Village Hall, on Thursday, May 7, from 3pm to 7pm. A report will be submitted to Durham County Council next month investigating areas such as visual impact, noise, effects on birdlife, archaeology, aircraft radar, tourism, transport and television reception. A full planning application could be submitted at the end of the year and the turbines could be operating by 2011.