A National Trust bid to build a wind turbine to power one of its holiday cottages in the Peak District has been turned down.

The trust applied to build a 12-metre-high structure on land at Longshaw, near Grindleford. The Peak District National Park Authority’s planning committee recommended approval, but a meeting of the full authority turned down the application.

The site, at White Edge Lodge, is just 2km (1½ miles) from Froggat Edge, one of the Peak’s top gritstone climbing crags.

The planners had recommended making an exception to its policy because the environmental benefits of the turbine would outweigh the visual intrusion – White Edge Lodge is currently served by a diesel generator. But the Ramblers’ Association and Grindleford Parish Council, which both objected to the plan, said other less intrusive sources of renewable energy should be used.

The site is within a Special Protection Area, Site of Special Scientific Interest, Special Area of Conservation and a Natural Zone, and the turbine would have been seen above the treeline from public footpaths and open access land.

Authority chair Narendra Bajaria said: “Having seen the evidence in a visual presentation of its impact on the landscape, we do not believe there were sufficient exceptional benefits to set aside our policy of protecting the landscape.

“National parks are a national asset, borne out of public concern to conserve their natural beauty and public access. This is enshrined in national policy for a reason. Longshaw is a very special wild and iconic place, not only for residents but for thousands of visitors, and we are here to protect its natural beauty, wildlife and heritage.”

The Friends of the Peak District supported the application. The National Trust said it had explored alternatives to the turbine, including other renewable sources and connecting the property to mains electricity a kilometre away, but rejected them as impracticable or unsuitable.