A WIND turbine has been erected near Crowdy Reservoir to help produce drinking water.

A new wind turbine, with a 30m hub height and a rotor diameter of 21 metres, has been installed at Lowermoor (Crowdy) Water Treatment Works, near Camelford.

The turbine is capable of generating around 60 per cent of the site's annual power needs.

The 100kW turbine was shipped from the manufacturer in Vermont, USA, to the reservoir and the turbine tower, blades and generator were assembled on site in four days by a team of five.

South West Water's Renewable Energy Manager, David Harpur, said: "This project is part of South West Water's drive to reduce our carbon footprint and help combat climate change.

"We have reviewed many of our sites to see which would be most suitable for small-scale wind turbines. Lowermoor was chosen for our first turbine because it gets plenty of wind and we are able to use the electricity produced on site. The works has plenty of space for the turbine and there are other turbines nearby so it fits in well with the local surroundings."

For the full story, and a round-up of this week's area news and sport, please see this week's edition of the 'Post'.