EVERYBODY is thinking about green issues today so it is heartening to see that councillors have given the go-ahead to the first two wind turbines to go up on a house in Westhoughton.

The 8ft turbines have been put on a year-long trial, during which the owner, Lynda Cash, will have to switch them off at night after her neighbours complained about noise.

In built-up areas, issues such as noise must be resolved to everyone's satisfaction. It is not difficult to see that a constant, low-pitched humming from wind turbines next door might be very annoying.

But with the Government urging everyone to reduce their domestic carbon emissions, it can only be a matter of time before more turbines are seen whirling away on suburban rooftops.

We can foresee a time when turbines will be treated like conservatories - with planning permission only needed if they depart from agreed norms.

Indeed, new homes should come with their own turbine or solar panels.

That may be at a price, but if every newly-built home came equipped with these energy savers, the cost would soon tumble and that would be good news for our pockets - not to mention the planet.