PLANS have emerged to replace five existing wind turbines near Kendal with up to seven turbines almost three times as tall.
Nadara is proposing to repower and extend Lambrigg Wind Farm, where five turbines with a tip height of 72 metres have operated since 2000.
The replacement turbines could reach 200 metres with the wind farm expanding beyond its existing footprint and its generating capacity rising from 6.5MW to around 42MW.
For comparison, England's largest operating onshore wind turbine, at Lawrence Weston in Bristol, is 150 metres tall.
Turbines measuring up to 200 metres high proposed for a major development across the Pennines could also be visible from parts of Cumbria, including Nine Standards Rigg and the wider Upper Eden area.
Hope Moor Wind Farm is being proposed by Fred. Olsen Renewables on high moorland straddling County Durham and North Yorkshire, between Barnard Castle and Richmond, south of the A66.
Around 23 turbines are currently being assessed across more than 1,100 hectares,
The Cumbria proposals are at an early stage with a request submitted to Westmorland and Furness Council for a scoping opinion ahead of an Environmental Impact Assessment and future planning application.
The site is about 5.7km east of Kendal, alongside the M6, and sits between two national parks.
The Yorkshire Dales National Park is around 1.9km east of the proposed development at its nearest point, while the Lake District National Park is approximately 2.6km north.
Landscape work will examine how the turbines could appear from a wide area.
Proposed assessment viewpoints include the western edge of Kendal, Staveley, Sizergh Castle, Sedbergh, The Calf, Calf Top, Barbon and Whitbarrow Scar.
The Kendal viewpoint is almost 8km from the nearest proposed turbine, while Staveley is around 12km away.
Several individual homes are much closer, including Moorcock Hall at around 500 metres, Big Park Farm at 610 metres and Lambrigg Farm at 630 metres.
Because the turbines would exceed 150 metres, aviation lighting is also likely to be required.
The scoping report says such lighting typically consists of 2,000-candela red lights mounted on turbine nacelles, with night-time visual effects to be assessed.
Preliminary work has also identified some properties within the proposed shadow-flicker study area, meaning the effect of moving turbine-blade shadows on nearby buildings will be examined further.
Residents will be able to view and discuss the proposals at public exhibitions at New Hutton Institute from 11am to 8pm on Tuesday, September 29, and Grayrigg Institute from 11am to 8pm on Wednesday, September 30.
Nadara says a further consultation is planned for early summer 2027 with a planning application expected in autumn 2027. If approved, it says the scheme would also provide a community benefit fund worth up to £210,000 a year.
