5 Jan 2026
Communities across the Borders and Highlands are increasingly pushing back against what they see as an imposed, wind-only energy policy driven by Scottish and UK governments, as reported recently in The Scotsman.
Promises of community benefits from wind farm developers are widely viewed as bribery, while soaring public subsidies for renewables sit alongside record profits for energy companies and ever-higher consumer bills.
With more than 20 wind energy projects proposed in the Borders alone, alongside major new substations, pylons and grid connections, local opposition is growing and becoming more organised.
Community councils are now banding together to demand a real say in developments that threaten landscapes, infrastructure such as the Eskdalemuir seismic monitoring station, and the character of the Borders countryside.
As Borders community councils are set to meet in Jedburgh on 17 January, the message is clear: resistance to large-scale wind and grid developments is no longer isolated – it is becoming a movement.
Read the full article which appeared in The Scotsman on 3 January here: https://www.scotsman.com/news/opinion/columnists/borders-set-to-join-highland-uprising-against-renewable-energy-5460007
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