MINISTERS HAVE refused consent for the proposed 31-turbine wind farm at Allt Duine near Kincraig.
Deputy First Minister John Swinney concluded that the plan would result in significant and unacceptable landscape and visual impacts on the Cairngorms National Park, an area of national importance for its natural and cultural heritage.
The decision follows a public local inquiry and ScotGov consultations on the potential impacts of the wind farm on the park and on the implications of the development on new planning policies.
Mr Swinney said: "The Scottish Government's policy on wind farms strikes a careful balance between maximising Scotland's huge green energy potential and protecting some of our most scenic landscape and wild areas. We have been clear that wind farms can only be built in the right places and Scottish Planning Policy sets out rigorous steps to ensure wind farms are sited appropriately and sensitively.
"The Scottish Government remains fully committed to renewables and to achieving our target of 100% of our electricity demand coming from renewables by 2020," he added.
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