Large areas of Scotland's landscape is to be protected from unsightly wind farms, Herald Scotland has reported.

Under plans being drawn up by the Scottish Government, the proposals aim to protect some of the country's most remote landscapes from being developed by energy companies.

The new guidance will include maps drawn up by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) and it is expected to designate about 28% of the landscape as 'wild land'. This would make it more difficult for firms to secure permission to construct wind farms.

The Scottish Government has said it wants to create a green energy revolution and wind farms have been a key part of that initiative; however residents in rural areas such as Galloway and Argyll have said the natural surroundings are being damaged by the turbines. On Wednesday, campaign groups welcomed the news for greater protection for rural areas.

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The new planning guidelines are expected to emerge this month in the revised Scottish Planning Policy and the national Planning Framework, which are being put out to consultation.

Planning guidance is being prepared for local councils, stating that wind-farm applications should not be approved except in special cases.

The areas identified by SNH are largely in the north and west Highlands, but the heritage body has said it won't mean a guarantee against development. Rather, it would be an approved map of wild land which would help identify a "precious national resource".

SNH Policy Manager Brendan Turvey said turbine applications would still need to be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

He explained: "What we are saying is that wild land is important and sensitive to wind farms.

"Wild land means there isn’t much there in terms of human artefacts. It may be possible to conceal a small hydro scheme without affecting the wild land resource, but a large wind farm might be a different matter."

(JP/CD)