Afton Wind Farm, S36C Variation Application

Afton Wind Farm, S36C Variation Application Non-Tchnical Summary 2015 [Typ txt]

Contnts 1. Introduction... 1 1.1. Th Applicant and Agnt... 1 1.2. Background... 1 1.3. Th Proposd Dvlopmnt... 1 2. Non-Tchnical Summary (NTS)... 1 2.1. Pr-Application Consultation... 2 2.2. Policy Contxt... 2 2.3. Dsign & Accss... 2 2.3.1. Control Building... 2 2.3.2. Mtring Building... 3 2.3.3. Undrground Cabl... 4 2.3.4. Accss Tracks... 5 2.3.5. Borrow Pits... 6 2.3.6. Prmannt Anmomtr (Mt) Mast... 7 2.3.7. Afton Road... 7 3. Environmntal Statmnt... 8 3.1. Scop of EIA... 8 3.2. Summary of th EIA... 10 4. Conclusion... 11 Afton Wind Farm, Sction 36C Variation May 2015

1. Introduction 1.1. Th Applicant and Agnt Th applicant is E.ON Climat and Rnwabls UK Dvlopmnts Limitd (E.ON). Th consntd Afton Wind Farm is E.ON s projct. Th applicant s agnt is Natural Powr Consultants Limitd (Natural Powr). Natural Powr is th lad consultant for E.ON which has managd th Environmntal Impact Assssmnt (EIA) procss for th proposd variations to th Afton dvlopmnt. 1.2. Background An Environmntal Statmnt (ES) has bn prpard by Natural Powr Consultants Limitd (Natural Powr) on bhalf of E.ON Climat and Rnwabls UK Dvlopmnts Limitd (E.ON) in support of an application mad undr Sction 36C of th Elctricity Act 1989 to vary th consnt grantd on 17 Octobr 2014 for Afton Wind Farm in East Ayrshir. E.ON has idntifid lmnts of th consntd Afton Wind Farm which should b altrd in ordr to facilitat th construction and opration of th wind farm whilst also bttr rflcting bst practic and minimising nvironmntal impacts. As such, E.ON is now proposing to vary this consnt. In ordr to assss whthr thr ar any additional nvironmntal ffcts of th proposd variations ovr and abov thos of th consntd projct, E.ON has undrtakn additional Environmntal Impact Assssmnt (EIA) in accordanc with th Elctricity Works (Environmntal Impact Assssmnt) (Scotland) Rgulations 2000. Th ES rports on th findings of this additional EIA. 1.3. Th Proposd Dvlopmnt Th proposd variations to th consntd Afton Wind Farm will compris of th following lmnts: Altrations r-locat and r-dsign of th onsit control building; altrnativ sctions of onsit accss tracks; rlocat and incras hight of th prmannt anmomtr mast; Additions a mtring building nxt to Black Hill Substation; undrground cabling that conncts th control building to th mtring building and in turn to th Black Hill Substation; up to fiv Borrow Pits (BP); widn limitd parts of Afton Road; and provid layby aras on Afton Road. Thr ar no changs to th consntd wind turbins associatd with th proposd dvlopmnt. 2. Non-Tchnical Summary (NTS) This NTS has bn prpard by Natural Powr on bhalf of E.ON in support of an application mad undr Sction 36C of th Elctricity Act 1989 to vary th consnt grantd on 17 Octobr 2014 for Afton Wind Farm in East Ayrshir. Th dvlopmnt is locatd to th wst of Afton Rsrvoir in East Ayrshir (approx. cntr grid coordinats E 262479, N 604270). Afton Wind Farm, Sction 36C Variation May 2015 1

This documnt provids a dscription of th proposd variations to th dvlopmnt and summariss th rsults of th EIA. Th NTS is lgally rquird to accompany th Environmntal Statmnt (ES) as pr th Elctricity Works (Environmntal Impact Assssmnt) (Scotland) Rgulations 2000 (as amndd). 2.1. Pr-Application Consultation Early consultation with SEPA, SNH and EAC was undrtakn and th rsults of ths discussions ld to th production and circulation of a Scoping Rport. Th applicant has stablishd a Community Liaison Group (CLG) which srvs to updat ky stakholdrs with projct progrss. It has bn stablishd with EAC at a mting hld 03 March 2015 that th CLG would b a suitabl forum for public consultation on this application. Prior to submission of th application, on 15 April 2015, E.ON hostd a mting with th CLG at th Nw Cumnock Community Cntr from 19:30 until 21:00. As a Sction 36C application thr is no statutory rquirmnt for a Pr-Application Consultation (PAC) Rport, howvr dtails ar providd within th Planning, Dsign & Accss Statmnt. 2.2. Policy Contxt Th proposd dvlopmnt will b dtrmind by Scottish Ministrs undr Sction 36C of th Elctricity Act 1989. East Ayrshir Council is a statutory consult and has th opportunity to considr th application. Th Planning, Dsign & Accss Statmnt which accompanis th ES provids th lgislativ and policy contxt of th proposal and asssss th proposd dvlopmnt against th rlvant planning policis including th Ayrshir Joint Structur Plan 2007 and East Ayrshir Local Plan 2010. 2.3. Dsign & Accss Th proposd dvlopmnt has bn dvisd factoring in ways of improving dsign of and accss to th consntd Afton Wind Farm. Principls of good dsign hav bn incorporatd in producing th final amalgamatd layout (including th variations dtaild in this documnt). As such th final wind farm layout as varid will mak fwr watrcours crossings, improv accss on Afton Road, rduc traffic flow on Afton Road and improv accss on sit. Full dtails ar providd in th Planning, Dsign & Accss Statmnt which accompanis th ES. 2.3.1. Control Building Th original control building was consntd north of Afton Rsrvoir, clos to Scottish Watr s offic (s Diagram 3). It srvs as a plac to oprat and monitor th wind farm and forms part of a link for conncting th wind farm to th national lctricity ntwork. Sinc th submission of th Afton planning application in 2004, changs to Halth and Safty at work lgislation, advancd communications tchnologis and th dvlopr s xprinc in oprating wind farms in rmot locations mans th consntd control building can and should b improvd. In addition, survys undrtakn clos to th consntd control building location found ottr holts that would b affctd by th dvlopmnt. Th nw control building will b approx. up to 32 m x 23 m x 7 m in siz; largr than that originally proposd to comply with currnt halth and safty rquirmnts which hav mrgd sinc th original application was submittd. Th nw control building is now proposd within th stting of th consntd Afton Wind Farm, wst of Afton Rsrvoir, which is mor suitabl for stablishing a grid connction to Black Hill substation. It is locatd away from ottr holts although a survy would b undrtakn prior to construction to confirm this is still th cas at tim of construction. A Control Building Dvlopmnt Ara has bn shown on Diagram 2 to accommodat th potntial final position and associatd point of cabl connction. Th dvlopmnt ara has bn stablishd in this location bcaus it may b possibl to sit th control building whr Borrow Pit 5 would b rstord. This would minimis ground disturbanc and will b subjct to furthr invstigation as th construction programm is dvlopd. Th dtails of which would b prsntd within th Construction Environmntal Managmnt Plan (CEMP) to b agrd with th planning authority bfor construction starts. Figur 2.1 blow provids an illustration of an xampl Control Building which is indicativ of th proposd building. Th final dsign of which would b agrd with th planning authority bfor construction. Sourc: Natural Powr Afton Wind Farm, Sction 36C Variation May 2015 2

Figur 2.1: Indicativ Control Building Dsign Th proposd control building is now also locatd outwith th catchmnt ara of Afton Rsrvoir. Furthr dtails ar providd in th ES. 2.3.2. Mtring Building Th mtring building is rquird as part of th grid connction to transfr th lctricity gnratd from th Afton Wind Farm to th Black Hill Substation. Th mtring building will b up to 10 m x 10 m x 3 m in siz and locatd in th Black Hill Substation Dvlopmnt Ara and within 100 m of th consntd Black Hill Substation, as shown in Diagram 2. Th location of th mtring building will not compromis us of xisting accss tracks nxt to it. Figur 2.2 provids an indicativ plan of th proposd Mtring Building. Afton Wind Farm, Sction 36C Variation May 2015 3

Sourc: Natural Powr Figur 2.2: Indicativ Mtring Building 2.3.3. Undrground Cabl Th undrground cabl is th physical link conncting th control building to Black Hill Substation via th mtring building to transport th lctricity gnratd by th wind farm to th national lctricity grid. Th cabl would b placd in trnchs and follow th rout of th consntd on-sit tracks whr possibl but ultimatly will b a dirct lin across to Black Hill Substation. In this rgard, ground disturbanc will b minimisd. Sinc th original application was submittd in 2004, th point of connction has bn confirmd at Black Hill hnc this particular variation. Figur 2.3 provids a cross-sction illustration of an indicativ undrground cabl arrangmnt. Afton Wind Farm, Sction 36C Variation May 2015 4

Sourc: Natural Powr Figur 2.3: Cross-sction of Indicativ Undrground Cabl Trnch 2.3.4. Accss Tracks Th accss tracks facilitat saf passag across sit for construction, maintnanc and mrgncy vhicls. Although th consntd track layout is saf and practical, th routs of altrnativ onsit accss tracks hav bn chosn to optimis vhicl movmnt around th sit in lin with currnt halth and safty guidanc and also minimis th potntial impacts on th nvironmnt (in particular by minimising watr crossings and avoiding aras of dp pat s th ES for mor dtails). Th consntd infrastructur has a micrositing allowanc of 50 m (Planning Condition 4 (a) (PC 4(a)) and thrfor all varid tracks which ar proposd in aras outwith this micrositd ara ar includd in this application and hav bn assssd appropriatly. Figur 2.4 provids an indicativ cross-sction of a typical accss track. Final dtails would b confirmd with th planning authority in th CEMP bfor construction. Afton Wind Farm, Sction 36C Variation May 2015 5

Sourc: Natural Powr Figur 2.4: Typical Accss Track 2.3.5. Borrow Pits A Borrow pit (BP) is an ara on th ground whr ston can b sourcd and usd to facilitat construction activitis on sit. BP wr not includd as part of th originally consntd Afton Wind Farm. Although th applicant has an arrangmnt for ston to b importd to sit, ground invstigation works on sit suggst th ara would as an altrnativ b suitabl for sourcing ston from sit, thrby rducing th traffic impacts of th projct. Th us of BP could rduc th numbr of lorris on th road that might othrwis b transporting ston through Nw Cumnock to sit. A BP Assssmnt Rport which is providd in Appndix 1 of th ES includs dtails of th anticipatd minral rsourc at BP1, BP2, BP3, BP4 and BP5, th likly mthods of xtraction and th proposd indicativ rstoration. Th locations of BP hav bn stablishd following ground invstigation work and hav bn locatd outwith th Afton Rsrvoir Watr Catchmnt Ara and whr good sourc of construction aggrgat is xpctd. Following thir us, thy will b rstord appropriatly. Thir locations ar idntifid in Diagram 2 Proposd Variations Afton Wind Farm, Sction 36C Variation May 2015 6

2.3.6. Prmannt Anmomtr (Mt) Mast A mt mast is a tall slndr towr typ construction which provids for various monitoring, rciving or mitting quipmnt to b placd at diffrnt hights as appropriat. In this cas, th mt mast would b fittd with diffrnt monitoring quipmnt to collct data such as wind spd and dirction. This data can b usd by th wind farm oprator to run th wind farm and gaug its prformanc. Sufficint wind data rcordd from tmporary masts onsit to inform ongoing wind monitoring rquirmnts has highlightd th nd to rlocat th consntd prmannt anmomtr mast and incras its hight from 60 m to 80 m in hight. Th dsign is xpctd to b a slndr mtal lattic structur and dtails will b agrd with EAC pr-construction. Appropriat warning lighting will b fittd to th top of th mt mast; th dtails of which shall b agrd with th Ministry of Dfnc bfor th mast is rctd. An indicativ illustration of a typical mt mast that may b usd is providd in Figur 2.5 blow. Sourc: Natural Powr Figur 2.5: Indicativ Prmannt Mt Mast 2.3.7. Afton Road Full dtails of th widning of th road and provision of laybys will b providd pr-construction undr a sparat submission to discharg planning condition 13 of th consntd Afton Wind Farm (s Proposd Variations to Afton Wind Farm, Sction 36C Variation May 2015 7

Conditions documnt that accompanis this application). Th provision of laybys and widning of th road may hlp th flow of traffic along th road givn its currnt dimnsions as a singl track road. Shltrs that xist on th sid of th road will b avoidd whr possibl howvr thr may b a rquirmnt to tmporarily mov or rlocat som of ths faturs to facilitat accss during th construction priod. Diagram 7 provids som dtail of th potntial xtnt of dvlopmnt on th road. 2.3.7.1. Widning Parts of Afton road nd to b widnd to allow saf passag of construction traffic to Afton Wind Farm. Most of th aras nding widning hav bn idntifid as bing within th public road boundary. 2.3.7.2. Laybys In ordr to manag th traffic using th Afton Road, laybys hav bn includd within this variation. Th xact locations and construction of ths laybys will follow th rquirmnts of East Ayrshir Council as th rlvant roads authority. 3. Environmntal Statmnt Th Environmntal Statmnt (ES) was prpard in lin with th Elctricity Works (Environmntal Impact Assssmnt) (Scotland) Rgulations 2000 as amndd Th ES rports th findings mad in th EIA of th proposd variations. This NTS forms part of th ES in summarising th rsults. Th scop of th EIA was th subjct of a formal Scoping Opinion providd by th ECDU which includd formal rsponss from consults including EAC, SEPA, SNH and Historic Scotland. 3.1. Scop of EIA Many of th potntial ffcts that may aris from th proposd dvlopmnt can b mitigatd through th work associatd with discharging th planning conditions that ar alrady in plac on th consntd Afton Wind Farm. Th ES rports th potntial ffcts of th proposd variations only. Through arly and dtaild consultation with th rlvant bodis, svral lmnts wr scopd out of th EIA as dtaild in th Scoping Opinion. EAC agrd that nois would not nd assssd givn th tmporary natur and controlld mthod of blasting associatd with th BP. Assssmnts of air quality, tourism, socio-conomics and land us would also not b rquird givn th limitd ffcts ovr and abov thos alrady cratd by th consntd Afton Wind Farm. SEPA agrd with th approach put forward by E.ON in th Scoping Rport not to assss flood risk bcaus th sit is not within an idntifid flood risk ara. SEPA was contnt that potntial impacts upon GWDTE from th proposd variations only should b assssd. SEPA also agrd that a Pat Managmnt Plan would not b ndd for inclusion in th ES but rathr in a Construction Environmntal Managmnt Plan (CEMP) prconstruction. Thr bing no chang to th turbins, th Carbon Balanc assssmnt was agrd to b scopd out. Th ara currntly forstd on sit is schduld to b flld by th dvlopr of Black Hill Substation so no flling is associatd with th proposd variations to th dvlopmnt and thrfor forstry is not assssd. SNH agrd thr to b no nd to assss landscap and visual ffcts or cology and ornithology. A dsk top study using PastMap 1 indicats that thr ar no Schduld Monumnts, Listd Buildings, Gardns & Dsignd Landscaps or faturs in th National Monumnts Rcord of Scotland or Scottish Sits and Monumnts Rcords on th proposd sit. A dsk-basd assssmnt conductd by RPS of cultural hritag for Afton Wind Farm notd thr ar no nationally important monumnts or buildings within 5 km of th sit. It stats thr ar no known dirct ffcts that will physically altr th cultural hritag of th ara and it is considrd that thr is limitd potntial for unknown archaology to xist and b affctd 2. Historic Scotland agrd during th scoping procss for thr b to no nd to assss th historic nvironmnt. 1 PastMap availabl onlin at http://jura.rcahms.gov.uk/pastmap/map (last accssd 08/05/2015) 2 Rport availabl onlin at http://www.wosas.nt/wosas_vnt.php?id=3306 (last accssd 08/05/2015) Afton Wind Farm, Sction 36C Variation May 2015 8

During th EIA procss, sit visits and dsk top assssmnts, in lin with all rlvant guidanc, wr carrid out to ascrtain th potntial impacts and mitigation masurs rquird. A rviw of planning policy was also mad to inform th assssmnt procss and nsur th proposd dvlopmnt was in lin with local, rgional and national policy. Afton Wind Farm, Sction 36C Variation May 2015 9

3.2. Summary of th EIA Full dtails of th EIA and rsults ar prsntd in th ES howvr, th rsults of th EIA ar summarisd in Tabl 3.1 blow. It prsnts th proposd variations to th dvlopmnt, what rlvant assssmnts wr mad on thm in th EIA procss, th rsults and also any rlvant planning conditions that ar in plac or proposd. Tabl 3.1: Disciplin Summary Effcts Tabl Hydrology, Hydrogology, Gology and Pat Control Building Proposd Variation Planning Conditions Mtring Building Undrground Cabl Onsit Accss Tracks Borrow Pit Prmannt Mt Mast Afton Road Rsidual Effcts Existing Condition Proposd variation rquird Not Significant - du to improvd dsign togthr with bst practic construction mthodologis and agrd mitigation masurs in th CEMP Not Significant PC11 PC4, 27,28, 29, 32, 33, 34 Ecology and Ornithology Scopd out basd on pr-construction survys bing undrtakn in lin with conditions in th consnt for Afton Wind Farm Not Significant PC4, 11, 23,24,25,26 Carbon Balanc Forstry Scopd out not rquird for th consnt, sourcing ston onsit and rducd pat disturbanc will only lad to an improvd carbon balanc Not Significant Scopd out th only forstry to b flld is along th grid rout which is du to b xtractd as part of th Black Hill Substation dvlopmnt Not Significant Nois Scopd out Scopd out Scopd out N/A Not Significant if blasting is rquird this will b tmporary and will b managd in lin with agrd mthodologis. Landscap and Visual N/A N/A Not Significant PC11 Not Significant - th inclusion of th variations was found to not introduc any additional significant landscap or visual ffcts ovr and abov thos prdictd in th consntd projct. Not Significant Traffic and Transport Not Significant du to rducd traffic movmnts from sourcing ston on sit Not Significant PC10 (a) Air Quality Not Significant du to rducd traffic movmnts from sourcing ston on sit and agrd dust mitigation masurs Not Significant Archaology Not Significant as confirmd with Historic Scotland Not Significant Tourism Not Significant th proposd variations will not introduc any nw dvlopmnt that will significantly affct tourism. Not Significant PC20 PC21 PC11 PC20 PC21 PC38 PC4 - Minor txt changs to includ proposd variations. PC11 minor amndmnts to txt to includ proposd variations PC11A nw BP condition PC4 - Minor txt changs to includ proposd variations. PC11 minor amndmnts to txt to includ proposd variations PC11A nw BP condition PC21 txt chang to includ rfrnc to th nw PC11A. PC11A nw BP condition PC38 txt amndd to includ mtring and control room building. Afton Wind Farm, Sction 36C Variation May 2015 10

4. Conclusion This NTS provids a dscription of th proposd dvlopmnt, its dsign and summariss th EIA, potntial ffcts and mitigation put forward. Altrations r-locat and r-dsign of th onsit control building; altrnativ sctions of onsit accss tracks; rlocat and incras th hight of th prmannt anmomtr mast; Additions a mtring building nxt to Black Hill Substation; undrground cabling that conncts th control building to th mtring building and in turn to th Black Hill Substation; up to fiv Borrow Pits (BP); widn limitd parts of Afton Road; and provid layby aras on Afton Road. Thr ar no changs to th consntd wind turbins associatd with th proposd dvlopmnt. Th EIA of th proposd dvlopmnt has bn undrtakn in accordanc with th Elctricity Works (Environmntal Impact Assssmnt) (Scotland) Rgulations 2000 as amndd. Th scop of th EIA was informd by th scoping procss. Thr ar no altrations to th scal, location or numbr of wind turbins associatd with th proposd dvlopmnt. Th application aims to improv th functionality and furthr rduc th nvironmntal impact of th consntd Afton Wind Farm. This has bn achivd through carful attntion to dsign. Potntial impacts hav ithr bn avoidd by dsign or can b ovrcom by appropriat construction and oprational managmnt. Whr ncssary ths mattrs will b considrd in mor dtail as part of th Construction Mthod Statmnt for th Afton Wind Farm. Th ES has dtaild what assssmnts hav bn undrtakn and rvald that thr ar no rsidual significant advrs ffcts prdictd to occur as a rsult of th proposd variations. Indd som potntially advrs impacts hav bn avoidd or rducd in significanc as a rsult of rducd watrcours crossings, rducd volum of traffic on Afton Road, a r-locatd control building and whr dpr pat xists - floating sctions of accss track. This xmplifis an adhrnc to th principls of dsign and sustainabl dvlopmnt which ar at th cor of national planning policy. Th planning and othr policy implications of this ar considrd in mor dtail in th Planning Dsign and Accss Statmnt which accompanis this variation application. At this stag howvr ths mattrs hav bn considrd in sufficint dtail to allow th nvironmntal impacts of this application to b considrd. Afton Wind Farm, Sction 36C Variation May 2015 11

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