RESIDENTS of Dunbar and the surrounding areas can learn more about revised plans for a wind farm about 30km off the coast at Torness.

Fresh proposals have been lodged for the Neart na Gaoithe (NnG) wind farm, which would be sited about 15km east of the Fife coast in the outer Firth of Forth.

It would have a maximum of 54 offshore turbines, generating 450 megawatts of power.

A public consultation is being held at the Bleachingfield Centre in Dunbar from 2pm to 8pm today (Tuesday).

It is the second consultation with residents of North Berwick invited to attend a presentation yesterday.

The exhibition will include images of what the offshore wind farm will look like from a number of viewpoints; maps outlining the site of the offshore wind farm and the route of its cable; information on environmental studies; details of the consenting process and how to respond to the application; and experts from the project on-hand to answer questions.

David Sweenie, project manager at Mainstream Renewable Power, the project’s developer, said: “It’s not only a requirement of the consenting process but it’s important to us as a developer to understand the views of local people regarding our plans and to ensure they have the opportunity to ask questions before our consent application is submitted.”

Consent for the wind farm was originally granted in 2014 but the project has been delayed due to an ongoing judicial review affecting a number of offshore wind farms.

The proposed wind farm in the new application uses fewer turbines to generate the same amount of electricity. If approved, it will replace the previously proposed wind farm.

Meanwhile, a group of firms which will benefit from the creation of the wind farm have written an open letter to animal welfare group the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) urging it to abandon court action against the project.

The RSPB launched a legal challenge against the approval of Neart na Gaoithe, as well as other three other offshore wind farms – Inch Cape, Seagreen Alpha and Seagreen Bravo – by Scottish Ministers in January 2015, claiming that the projects pose “too great a risk to the many thousands of resident and migratory seabirds”.

In July 2016, the Outer House of the Court of Session ruled in favour of RSPB and ordered Scottish Ministers to reconsider the decisions to approve the four wind farms.

Scottish Ministers lodged an appeal against this ruling in August 2016 and in May they won their appeal.

But organisations invested in Neart na Gaoithe are concerned the RSPB will challenge this decision.

Now they have come together to appeal to the RSPB to drop any future legal action.

In total 29 companies have formed the NnG Offshore Wind Farm Coalition to campaign for the project.