Mark Todd and Blyth Tait. Pictures / Martin Sykes
Two of New Zealand's most celebrated sportsmen yesterday rode into battle to stop a wind farm south of Auckland.
Olympic gold medal winning equestrians Mark Todd and Blyth Tait told the Environment Court that horses at nearby stables and an equestrian centre would be spooked by the proposed 90m turbines.
They disagreed with a Sydney University horse psychologist's conclusion that the wind farm would have only a minor effect.
"It's not a situation where you can say a horse will spook but it's a sad fact that horses are very unpredictable animals," Mr Todd said.
"For most of the horses coming into that environment for the first time, [the wind farm] will certainly have an adverse effect."
Both said Dr Paul McGreevy's suggestion the animals could be "habituated" was not practical.
As an owner of horses that might be trained at Isola Racing Stables, which adjoins the proposed wind farm, Mr Tait said the costs of acclimatising horses and the risks involved might make him take them elsewhere.
"There are definitely risks and calling them minor I don't agree with," he said.
Outside court, 30-year horse trainer and Isola Racing Stables owner Moira Murdoch said some of the animals she trained were top thoroughbreds worth up to $1 million.
There were 30 young race horses at the stables at any one time.
"My back's against the wall, my business has gone if this goes ahead," she said.
Michelle Innes, who runs the Isola Equestrian Centre, said the plan would doom her business.
"I only need one competitor to blame the wind farm for things going badly and it's all over, we will fold," she said.
The hearing, before Judge Gordon Whiting and commissioners Marlene Oliver and Kevin Prime, is expected to finish on Monday.
