An emotive new video highlighting the plethora of giant wind turbines spreading in hills circling Loch Ness has attracted hundreds of views within hours of going online.
The six-minute-long film – Save Loch Ness.com – uses the haunting Scottish tune Caledonia as a soundtrack, as a counter racks up the growing number of turbines.
It is expected to add weight to an online petition launched last month which calls for a moratorium on further windfarm construction within a 22-mile radius of the iconic loch.
The video was produced by Malcolm Kirk, a retired businessman from Craobh Haven in Argyll.
James Treasurer of pressure group The Friends of the Great Glen, who launched the online petition, said: “I’m impressed with the video’s montages showing the countryside ‘before and after’ the turbines.
“The visualisations are very authentic and give you an impression of what the countryside’s going to look like with all these major developments.”
Anti-windfarm campaigner Lyndsey Ward, from Kiltarlity, who supplied some data for the film, said: “The Scottish Government, Scottish Natural Heritage and Highland Council have not updated their turbine numbers for the public to see what is really happening.
“It takes campaigners and the expertise of the creator to tell the truth. Scotland is being swamped with industrial turbines and there is no let up in sight.”
She accused Highland Council of “concealment” in allegedly not publishing comprehensive, up to date statistics about the region’s windfarm portfolio.
A spokeswoman for the council said: “We strongly disagree with that claim. For some years, we have provided useful information in the form of a map and list of large windfarm developments across Highland.
“In February, we launched a new interactive map on our website which shows the location of windfarms and turbines in the Highlands.
“It covers all scales of renewable energy development and provides detailed information such as turbine sizes and planning reference numbers.”