Prince Charles endorses wind energy in new film at Sundance Festival

In Harmony: A New Way of Looking at Our World, which is narrated by Prince Charles, he spoke of the need to “end our dependence on fossil fuel” and embrace renewable energy sources – a declaration apparently putting him at odds with his father, who described onshore wind farms as “absolutely useless”.

During the film’s opening sequence, the Prince said: “Time is running out – this is a call to action… Harmony offers a way of seeing the world that could lead to, in very practical ways, much more sustainable behaviour in a wide range of important areas.” His words were accompanied by shot of a wind turbine in a meadow.

In another scene illustrated with images of wind turbines in the German town of Trendelberg, which has pioneered their use and is entirely powered by renewable energy sources, the Prince paid tribute to Germany for “taking the lead” in developing wind turbine technology.

He said: “I recently flew over the German countryside where ancient buildings and castles now merge into a new landscape dotted with solar panels and wind turbines. I certainly support the commitment to working with nature’s freely-given forms and clean energy.”

The film also features an interview with Mike Guess, a former steelworker at the Redcar plant in Middlesbrough, which reopened earlier this month to begin steel production to support the UK’s wind turbine manufacturing industry.

Mr Guess spoke of being hopeful of finding new employment in the industry: “There’s talk about wind farms, talk about making the windmills and the blades – that might be an emerging technology.”

The Prince then said: “With the global economy in crisis, there is a tremendous need and an opportunity to think about how we can protect the natural world and protect jobs.” He added: “I confess I am not a fan of onshore wind farms because of their intrusion on the landscape. It would be better if they were placed offshore.”

www.telegraph.co.uk