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But a new survey has planted a foot firmly in the former camp suggesting that wind farms are now in danger of destroying the beauty of some of the most striking portions of the Scottish countryside.

Divisive topic: Scotland has an increasing number of wind farms - including these turbines at Ardrossan The poll, carried out by the Mountaineering Council of Scotland, has found that climbers and walkers are being deterred from visiting the countrys rural areas because of the increasing encroachment of turbines into what were once wide-open spaces.

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Two thirds of those surveyed say they have been put off visiting Scotland by wind farms and will not revisit places they have already visited where turbines now exist.

Over fourth fifths of respondents are insisting that there must be protection for National Parks and National Scenic Areas.

All change: Scotland has sought to expand its use of reneweable energy under Alex Salmond The survey results are a stark warning to the Scottish government, says David Gibson of the Mountaineering Council of Scotland.

Badly sited wind farms are a serious threat to Scotlands reputation as a tourism destination.

The more that are built in our mountains, the more visitors are put off.

The Scottish government hopes to generate 100 per cent of Scotlands energy from renewable sources by 2020 with the majority of this power coming from wind farms.

Whitelee Wind Farm, which opened in East Renfrewshire in 2009, is the largest on-shore wind farm in the UK, with 215 turbines (and the second largest in Europe, behind only the Fntnele-Cogealac development in Romania).

Clyde Wind Farm, in South Lanarkshire, is another sizeable wind project, with 152 turbines.

Taking over Whitelee Wind Farm in East Renfrewshire is the largest on-shore wind farm in the UK Many of the wind farms planned for Scotlands most remote and beautiful areas have yet to be built, he continues.

The evidence from this, and other, surveys, suggests that visitors dislike them more and more as they cease to be a novelty.

The survey consulted 970 regular climbers and hikers who are members of either the Mountaineering Council of Scotland or the British Mountaineering Council.

Over three quarters of those surveyed 77 per cent live in Scotland.

A YouGov poll commissioned by the Sunday Times last October found a pretty even split on the question of whether the UK government is right considering future energy needs to invest money in the development of wind technology.

Fifty-one per cent of those questioned said that the government was right in this case.

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