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Ecology: Mitigation & Enhancement for Onshore Wind Farms

Ecology: Mitigation & Enhancement for Onshore Wind Farms. Rachael Iveson Senior Ecologist 28 th March 2014. Overview. My background Ecological consultancy What we do Legislation Site assessment Environmental Impact Assessment Avoidance, mitigation, compensation and enhancement

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Ecology: Mitigation & Enhancement for Onshore Wind Farms

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  1. Ecology: Mitigation & Enhancement for Onshore Wind Farms Rachael Iveson Senior Ecologist 28th March 2014

  2. Overview My background Ecological consultancy What we do Legislation Site assessment Environmental Impact Assessment Avoidance, mitigation, compensation and enhancement Examples

  3. My Background 2003 BSc (Hons) Forensic Science 6 years in pharmaceutical industry 2010 MSc Environmental Studies 3 years working for RPS (UK engineering and environmental consultancy) 1 year working for dedicated ecology consultancy, MacArthur Green

  4. Ecology Consultancy – Our Work Majority = ecological assessment of a site for a proposed development Planning requirement Monitoring (usually post-consent) Population modelling, collision modelling Advising statutory bodies - guidance

  5. Legislation European Natura 2000 sites; Birds Directive; Habitats Directive Individual species: otter, GCN, wildcat, bats, adder, golden eagles, hen harrier, Killarney fern, etc. National UK: WCA, Protection of Badgers Act Scottish (e.g. water vole) Statutory Agencies SNH, SEPA, Marine Scotland Guidance EU, UK, Scottish Invasive non-native species

  6. Wind Farm – Assessment Desk based study Field surveys Consultation Ecological Assessment Significance Avoidance, Mitigation, Compensation, Enhancement

  7. Avoidance (Design Mitigation) Results of ecology surveys should feed into the design as early as possible. Infrastructure: turbines, borrow pits, substation, tracks, lay-down areas, etc. Avoidance – use of buffer zones Protected features Habitats and water (inc. GWDTEs) Flight paths (birds and bats)

  8. Mitigation Pre-construction, construction, operation, decommission • Good practice measures • Tailored to habitats/ species/ features present • Species Protection Plans

  9. Compensation Required when mitigation can not be fully achieved on site, e.g. destruction of a protected feature. 'Like for like' replacement. Example: Otter holt underneath root plate of a tree – required to be felled

  10. Artificial Otter Holt

  11. Enhancement Operational Phase – life of wind farm Habitat or Conservation Management Plans • How is this achieved? • Planning condition • Steering Group – agreement • Monitoring and reporting

  12. Enhancement Example: Fairburn Wind Farm Conservation Management Plan (CMP) Wind Farm consented 2009, commissioned 2010 20 x 1.75MW turbines (35MW generating capacity) Wind farm covers 348 ha CMP covers Fairburn Estate: 4,711 ha (~6x7 km2)

  13. Fairburn Wind Farm CMP – Aims Mitigation to reduce impacts to raptors – loss of foraging habitat and collision of merlin, hen harrier and red kites Compensation for loss of semi-natural broadleaved woodland Enhancement and restoration for native woodland, blanket bog & golden eagle prey

  14. Monitoring Ensure all Aims are being achieved Programme in CMP: Vegetation monitoring Bird monitoring Prey monitoring Conducted periodically Reported to Habitat Management Group

  15. Mark Hill Wind Farm Existing site in operation Consented 2008, commissioned 2011 28 turbines (56MW generating capacity) Habitat Management Plan Aims: to restore blanket bog and native woodland (UK BAP species) Baseline – commercial forestry HMP area extends beyond WF area

  16. Mark Hill Wind Farm – Aims of HMP Blanket bog restoration and enhancement Native woodland establishment and enhance existing woodland Habitat enhancement for amphibians and reptiles Riparian habitat enhancement

  17. Summary Overview of ecology consultancy in development of wind farms Planning through to operation Avoidance, mitigation and compensation – 'neutralise' impacts from wind farm Enhancement – where possible Dependent on land availability, ecology on site, developer, planning conditions

  18. Future Improvements? Future enhancement opportunities Objectives and prescriptions – do these need further scientific rigour? Should enhancement measures be mandatory? How can enhancement appeal to developers - incentives? Biodiversity offsetting – can a metric be applied to ecosystem services, that also incorporates social, economic and other environmental factors? Putting a price on the environment Planning system – policies, guidance to LPAs, enforcement

  19. Any Questions? If you would like to ask me any other questions please feel free to send me an e-mail: Rachael.Iveson@gmail.com

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