Navitus Bay Case Study

Just off the shores on England, the planning and production of a wind farm project called Navitus Bay was under a strong debate. An anti-wind energy group called “Challenge Navitus” began a campaign in order to convince the government of the United Kingdom to terminate the project. Ultimately, Challenge Navitus was successful in ending the project, and they were able to accomplish this through the use of online visual simulations as well as various rhetorical strategies, including free market rhetoric.
Navitus Bay was a proposed a wind farm about nine miles from English shorelines, over an area of more than 60 square miles. It was also expected that Navitus Bay would provide electricity for up to 700,000 homes throughout the United Kingdom (Zee, 2013). If plans for Navitus Bay had gone through, it would be the world’s biggest wind farm. The protestors in charge of Challenge Navitus said they are not against wind energy in general, however this specific project is a problem to them due to the location and sheer size of it. …show more content…
Unesco tried to challenge Navitus Bay as well by writing a letter to the government saying that, “The property will change from being located in a natural setting largely free from human-made structures to one dominated by human-made structures” (“Jurassic Coast Unesco...”, 2014). This idea of wanting to keep nature untouched by man is one of the largest issues with offshore windfarms, and it is a driving force behind the Challenge Navitus campaign. These groups care so much about protecting the land because it has a substantial significance towards their region. The coast from Purbeck in Dorset to the south of the Isle of Wight surrounding Poole Bay is rightly valued. Expansive views escape the intrusion of man-made structures, and it is a popular destination for those wanting to “get away from it all” (“Why Challenge...”