Developer United Utilities wants to build up to 28, 80-metre high turbines on farmland bordering Thorne and Moorends.

And if given the go-ahead, the Tween Bridge project would supply enough electricity to power 39,000 homes - a third of all houses in the borough.

However residents have raised fears over noise generated by the development, as well as its impact on the surrounding area.

A public meeting has been set up at Thorne Church Hall, Church Street, at 7.30pm next Tuesday so residents can air their views and question representatives from the Council for the Protection of Rural England and other speakers.

Dr Ann Walker, a developmental psychologist, of Swanland Court, Thorne, said people in virtually every home in the town would be able to see and hear the turbines.

She said: "We have all sorts of concerns about noise and the visual impact and feel it's an infringement on the rights of the people of Thorne and Moorends.

"The scheme is not providing any long-term local jobs and also, because of restrictions on building homes close by, it would have a depressing effect on the housing market which is a big problem for the area, which has already been blighted for years."

A spokesman for the company said: "There have been huge technological advances in wind turbines and modern ones are designed to work very, very quietly.

It is perfectly possible to stand underneath a wind turbine and have a conversation without having to raise your voice."

He added that it would be difficult to see the turbines above existing structures.

United Utilities expects to submit its plans to the Department of Trade and Industry before the end of the year.

Proposals have already run into resistance from Finningley Airport developers Peel which said it would be too close to the runway.

04 December 2003