THE?green ambitions of staff and students at Okehampton College have been dealt a blow by councillors in West Devon.

The college had sought planning permission to install two wind turbines on Ball Hill as part of the school's drive to become energy-efficient.

But the project was refused by West Devon Borough councillors at a meeting on Tuesday — despite the advice of a planning officer to give the scheme the go-ahead.

The two turbines, with a hub height of 18.3 metres and tip height of 24.8 metres, would have provided power which would have been fed into the Western Power grid, and considerably reduced the college's energy bill.

West Devon Council planning officer Anna Henderson-Smith recommended the proposal be granted. She described the scheme as a 'well considered response to the constraints and sensitivities of the site'.

But councillors at the planning committee meeting in Tavistock were concerned by the visual impact the turbines would have on the landscape, stating that they would be 'unduly prominent in the landscape, breaking the view of the skyline from public viewpoints'.

That was in stark contrast to the report of Anna Henderson-Smith, who said: 'Its visual impact from public views such as footpaths, Simmons Park, the sports fields and Dartmoor will be minimal due to the topography of the area, existing screening, colour of the turbines and their siting.'

Cllr Ken Williams was the first to voice concerns over the affect the turbines would have on the landscape.

While appreciating the positive environmental outcomes the turbines would provide, he felt the turbines would visually intrude over the top of the ridge of the hill. This could be seen to undermine the siting of the Okehampton housing development, which was specifically placed so as not to be visible over the horizon, he said.

Cllr Dennis Bater felt that the people of the town may not be aware of the potential visual impact the turbines would have.

Another councillor felt the turbines would be a prominent part of the view from Simmons Park, and was surprised at the verdict of Dartmoor National Park — the Park had no objections to the plans.

Their report said: 'It is not considered that views toward the National Park will be harmed due to the topography of the land and the limited vantage points where the turbines would be seen in the context of the moorland to the south of the application site.'

Speaking at the meeting to defend the proposal, Keith Webber, community technology co-ordinator for the college, said: 'There have been very few local objections.