Go-ahead for wind power scheme

The proposed turbines would be 100m high

A plan to build a wind farm on Skye has been approved despite opposition from local people.

Highland councillors, meeting in Portree, gave permission to the energy firm, Amec, to construct 27, 100m turbines on a hillside near Edinbane.

Critics, including the former television executive Sir Jeremy Isaacs, said the development would dominate the skyline and harm the island's tourist trade.

The towers will be a feature of the landscape for at least the next 25 years.

Officials had recommended that councillors give their backing to the project, which will feed electricity into the national grid.

Work on the £300m development is expected to start in 2004 and create between 30 and 50 short-term construction jobs.

Protesters also believe the wind farm will have a negative impact on any plans for an airport.