MANNAR (Sri Lanka) — Beneath rotating wind turbines on Sri Lanka’s Mannar peninsula, a fishing net is hauled up the beach by tractor winches and 20 men, but once again the catch is meagre.

“I’ve been fishing here since I was a boy,” said Venkatasamy Kalimuththu, 65, looking disappointedly at the catch — a few good fish, some small fry, and several clumps of seaweed.

“Before the wind turbines were installed, we caught a lot of fish,” he added.

“Now, much less.”

Since they appeared six years ago, the Mannar wind turbines have been blamed for a host of problems — from dwindling catches to floods, fuelling opposition to green energy projects as fuel costs soar.

Local residents are determined to see them dismantled or, at the very least, prevent more from being built.

The opposition comes as war in the Middle East sends fuel and electricity costs soaring, making the shift to renewable energy an economic imperative.

Although he admits he has no proof, Kalimuththu is convinced the spinning blades are driving fish away.

“When the fans rotate, the shadow falls on the water,” he said. “So the fish don’t swim up to the shallows.”