Surely this pylon placement is criminal?

[Attenboroughsmistress]

On our hunt for property I came across this absolutely gorgeous listed farmhouse, a few acres, backs on to protected land and a lake, pool and tennis court - we couldn’t figure out why it had been for sale for a while and why it seemed cheaper than similar properties - was it structurally unsound or something? The lake floods regularly??…

Then I noticed the bloody great massive pylons that basically wrap it to the back and side! It almost seems criminal to put pylons so close to a listed property that has been there since 1600s, and then turn a corner with them and march them across the lovely lake — they’ve even built a little island for one of the pylons IN THE LAKE!

What on earth possessed the national grid to do this? Why not just put the pylons in an empty field or along the M4 which is also nearby and seems to be going in the same general direction?

I feel bad for the property owners, how they must have felt watching them go up. And for the people who enjoy hiking and sailing in the lakes, which must be a bit ruined by the pylons now too.

People who live near pylons, would this arrangement be a deal breaker for you? Do you worry about the whispers around health risks?

Just sad really! Always irks me when it seems like there were choices and a bad one was made.

Oops here is the link https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/172045985

Maybe the owners received payment for them on their land? I suspect the pylons were put there becuase it was the cheapest/shortest route.

Surely it’s not that bad though. Most houses have a worse view than this, overlooked gardens and ugly fences and they still sell. I doubt the pylons are the reason this isn’t selling. It’s a beautiful house but it’s probably a money pit in terms of maintenance and you can’t do many changes considering it’s a listed property. It takes a certain type of owner with a certain type of budget to be able to own it and enjoy it as it is.

The owners must have received payment.
Its much easier for pylons to go in straight lines than to change direction.

Don't feel bad for them - they'll have been well compensated. And pylons don't permanently destroy or disfigure the land. Unlike acres of new builds.

I genuinely thought this was going to be my friends house - then realised it wasn’t for sale 🤣. So someone else who has had this happen in a very similar way then. In my friends case the route runs the whole length of their farm as the route through the valley was the quickest and cheapest for NG. And to PP, there is no negotiation and barely any ‘compensation’ - which did not cover losses in crop cover for the time period they were being built (which was more than one growing season). The land was churned up for miles and NG trespassed over parts of fields in crop they had no need/right to access. Friend spent a long time toing and froing in (what turned out to be meaningless) ‘negotiations’ on comp’ and also requesting they were run underground, which is perfectly possible but they refused. Basically you have no rights once the route is agreed. And now, despite absolute reassurance to the contrary, they are living in a house with constant humming noise to a greater or lesser extent depending on the weather. The whole process almost broke them.

Wow what an awful experience! It would be good if communities could at least have the option of clubbing together to get them underground for a stretch? Who makes the decisions about cost benefit for the routes?

Surely in this case with the beautiful lakes, the sailing club etc, the extra expense of going around everything a little bit instead of straight through could have been justified?

Yes that’s my point though, this poor farm is right at the change of direction, which goes through a lake with a sailing club! Surely going a few more down and then turning left along the M4 would have been less destructive. I have added a marked up map - with arrows for the pylons, and the “island” for the pylon circled in blue.

The pylons probably predate the M4. Lots of pylons were put up in the 1920s and 30s.

And there would have been various options looked at at the time, who they could do deals with, plus the geographic constraints.

We have an interest in this as a power company was suggesting part of our land as a route, in the end it didn't happen.

The costs of running it underground are tremendous, pylons themselves aren't cheap but give the company access for maintenance which buried lines wouldn't. I think we were told about ten time more expensive to run underground, no way a community could carry that burden.

There are houses round here where the short garden ends and the nearest pylon cable is about 5 yards away vertically.

I came on to say exactly this.

When the grid was constructed it was a major undertaking and was bringing such huge benefits that they had license to "get it done" and environmental concerns were nothing like they are now.
As the PP said, the pylons probably predated the motorway by a few decades.

This issue has been addressed in literature & film, Lord Peter Whimsey and the film Hope And Glory both make reference to the placing of pylons in the 30's.

I dont see a problem, I thought it would be right on top of the house, it's not.

I think I'd just be glad to be get a bargain on the house.

We have a pylon by our house. It doesn't bother me. It doesn't make any noise and there are mature trees around it.
I can see why the friend of the poster up thread wasn't happy though. We chose this house with the pylon in situ. A very different thing to having them forced upon you and costing you money.
I didn't think the house the op linked to looked that bad but I suppose I'm desensitised!

That is the most beautiful house I’ve ever seen, wow

That is a beautiful house. If I could afford it with its pylons vs not afford it without, I’d forgive the pylons (can’t afford it either way mind you).

However I’d be more concerned about risk of flooding and potential noise and fumes from the M4. I hate background motorway noise.

Yes, I suppose they have to put them somewhere but sucks if it’s near you! (Clearly I have NIMBY instincts 😂) Now that I see this risk I wonder how we can see what the plans are for future pylon projects as I think a lot more are being built? Would be sad to buy a peaceful countryside place and then a pylon goes up in your backyard.

Yes I think one would be alright, like if they just had the one behind or the ones to the side - it’s just that they are nestled right into the bend. If electromagnetic fields are actually a thing to be concerned about, presumably they’re in a double zone with the fields overlapping from both sides!

I stay at a holiday place regularly which has lots of pylons.

Ugly but generally not a bother, until last time! One of the pylons was humming so loudly it honestly sounded like it was going to explode! No way would I live near that. Horrendous

When it's foggy they make a hell of a racket.

There are loads of " consultations" going on now for the huge wind farms that are going up. Us and the village near our land were up in arms and they make it look like you can influence the decision, but in reality I think they just do what they want.

It wouldn’t bother me. Rural idylls like that need power lines, sewage pits etc.

It would bother me. Potential health implications but the constant buzzing noise would drive me insane

Yes o think it was foggy. Above a lake like PP and I did think is it something to do with the humidity/ water.

Incredibly disconcerting.

That lake is an old gravel pit. They dug the pit around the pylon rather than built an island. Also, Sulhamstead isn't a particularly desirable part of West Berkshire.

Pylons near a house is always a problem.
it puts people off because they buzz, look ugly, and people have health concerns about living near them. Whether those health concerns are real or not, the public perception is there. Pylons near a house will
always devalue it.

The pylons in the photos are a 1960s design. So they have been there a long time and were put in place when environmental matters weren’t such a big consideration.