PLANS for two new wind turbines in Selby district could be approved next week after defence chiefs dropped their objections.

Selby District Council’s planning committee will debate separate applications for masts at Riccall Business Park and in the village of Lumby, near South Milford, on Wednesday.

Both schemes have drawn local opposition but have now been recommended for approval.

The Ministry of Defence had initially said the turbines should not be allowed, saying they could interfere with the radar system at nearby RAF Linton-on-Ouse, but has now accepted proposals by both applicants to deal with this issue, while also raising questions about whether these measures would work.

Energy Prospects Co-operative wants to erect a 77m turbine at Riccall, on land which was once part of the area’s colliery.

The scheme has drawn 22 objections from residents, who said the mast would be “overwhelming” and distract drivers on the A10 and A163; would affect wildlife on nearby Skipwith Common, and would cause too much harm from noise and vibrations for the amount of power it will generate.

In a report, planning officer Louise Milnes said: “The turbine has been set a sufficient distance from residential properties and is a similar distance to other turbines of a similar scale approved within the district.”

The Lumby scheme would see an 87m turbine built at Butts Lane, with opposition coming from two local parish councils and 38 members of the public. The parish councils said “very special circumstances” were needed for the mast to be built in the green belt, and the applicants had not shown how a single wind turbine would meet these criteria.

Planner Ruth Hardingham’s report stated: “The economic benefits to a local business were enough to justify the turbine in the green belt.”