THE owner of a wind turbine which residents say has made their lives a misery has defended his eco-friendly venture. Charles Baete, of Drakes Way

THE owner of a wind turbine which residents say has made their lives a misery has defended his eco-friendly venture.Charles Baete, of Drakes Way, Portishead, says his wind turbine is not the reason his neighbours are being kept up at night and insists the biggest noise is created by the aeroplanes flying overhead.Residents of nearby Admirals Walk think differently though and say the noise and the turbine's appearance are becoming unbearable.North Somerset Council will soon decide on whether or not the turbine stays after a planning application was submitted to the authority to keep it up.Residents living near Mr Baete, a former colonel, say they have had to rearrange their home to avoid their lounges overlooking the structure.Mr Baete says in a letter to the North Somerset Times: "I purchased the wind generator from B&Q where it is on sale to the general public."The blades are about 4ft in length and when they are rotating give no more noise than the wind in the trees."The greatest noise in this neighbourhood is aircraft to Bristol International Airport and lawnmowers."My bedroom is underneath the turbine, about 6-9ft away and its presence has made no difference to my sleep."I am very keen on ecology, and the preservation of our fossil fuels, and have had solar heating panels on my home since 1974."The turbine is an environmentally friendly structure which is virtually motionless, is well away from the boundaries of my property, does not cause smoke, smell or radiation and would not cause any disease in people."Mr Bates has submitted a planning application to keep the turbine up to North Somerset Council after neighbours Anne and Richard Golding alerted the authority of its presence.The application has already attracted six letters of objection and one letter in support in favour of the turbine. It will be considered by the council's north area committee after local councillor Barry Walters said it would need to be looked at by a committee of councillors rather than simply decided on by unelected officers.Portishead and North Weston Town Council has said it has no objections to the turbine.