TODAY is D-day for a controversial £36m windfarm in the hills behind Greenock — as the developers make a desperate last ditch plea for councillors to approve the project.

Greenock firm 2020 Renewables want to build eight 110-metre (360ft) tall turbines on land to the north and east of Corlic Hill, between Greenock and Port Glasgow.

Councillors will today gather for a crunch meeting to decide the application’s fate.

Ahead of the meeting, Alan Baker, managing director of 2020, has sent letters to every local councillor saying he was ‘extremely disappointed’ to learn that planning officials had recommended the project should be rejected.

In the letter, Mr Baker states: “The economic benefits that can flow from having Inverclyde Windfarm are huge in terms of jobs and investment. I urge you to take a balanced view of this application and if you are persuaded by my counter arguments please support this application.” As reported in the Tele recently, more than 700 people have objected to the proposals.

But 2020 supremo Mr Baker believes support is growing for the plans.

He said: “There is growing recognition of the importance of economic development locally.

“Evidence of this can be seen by the 10 letters of support and 123 signatures on a petition in favour of the windfarm, both recently submitted to the council. We have analysed the online petition against the project and the majority of objectors live outwith Inverclyde.

“Within the Inverclyde context, the number of objectors represents less than 0.5 per cent of the local population.” But in a 27-page report about the development, Stuart Jamieson, Inverclyde’s head of regeneration and planning, has outlined major concerns about the proposal.

He said: “This application, despite the applicant’s attempts to absorb the windfarm into the landscape, still remains visually prominent to the detriment of the character of the landscape.

“The applicant has chosen a site of extreme visual prominence at the top of a rolling hills landform overlooking towns, and in one of the most scenic areas of Scotland.

“The windfarm would be a dominant and incongruous feature of the skyline, as viewed from parts of Greenock, Kilmacolm and the wider Clyde Estuary.

“It would visually dominate the northern reaches of the Clyde Muirshiel Regional Park, to the detriment of the perception and recreational enjoyment of this part of the park.

“It is also clear from the consultation responses that there remain safety concerns as to how the proposed windfarm would impact on the safe operation of Glasgow Airport and en-route air traffic.” Members of the planning board have already voted against the application but all local councillors will now have the final say.

See tomorrow’s Tele for a full report on today’s meeting.