Powys politicians joined over 200 members of the public for a meeting over the proposed network of electricity pylons across the north of the county.

On September 26, Montgomeryshire MP Craig Williams and Senedd Members Russell George were among those at Meifod Village Hall to discuss the Bute Energy and Green GEN Cymru consultation for pylons and wind farms in Montgomeryshire.

Town and community councillor Jonathan Wilkson, chair of the group Montgomeryshire Against Pylons, was also in attendance. He founded the group over twelve years ago when similar proposals for energy infrastructure across Powys were proposed. He stated that the latest meeting re-adressed some of the concerns raised over a decade ago.

He said: “We had about 200 people in attendance and the consensus was a unanimous opposition to the proposal based on the reactions we received at the meeting.

“The feeling was that this scheme of exporting power from Wales into England, power that people in Wales won’t have access to, would cut out any promised community benefits.

“More so than twelve years ago, there was a more general acceptance of renewable energy being the way to go forward and something that we definitely need, but attendees agreed that this was something that should feed into local communities along individual lines, rather than a massive industrial scale.”

Bute Energy wants to build up to 25 turbines at the newly revealed Llyn Lort Energy Park, to the west of Cefn Coch in Montgomeryshire, as well as a power line connecting the site to the National Grid near Lower Frankton in north Shropshire.

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Mr Wilkinson added: “People were not just there to blindly oppose any proposal, there was a genuine desire to engage with and think about every option.

“More than listening to opinions on the proposal, we wanted to ensure everyone was informed and aware of what was going on. Even if they don’t have a strong view of the proposal, we felt it was important to provide balance and clarity to what was being discussed.

“It’s possible the proposal will go through, but I think a meeting like this will ensure that the concerns of the population will carry more political importance at this early consultation period.”

Mr Wilkinson also stated that Montgomeryshire Against Pylons intends to hold more public meetings in the coming months.

He added: “It’s also much easier to spread information about meetings like this than it was twelve years ago. Our next move will be to hold specific meetings in the individual communities that will be impacted by the proposal.”