From CHRIS LOWE Interested Party, Reference: 20022096
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From: To: Cleve Hill Solar Park Subject: Additional Evidence for Noise impacts on birds; Land Use and effects on Carbon; the Benefits of Nature; Date: 24 August 2019 17:23:19 Attachments: From CHRIS LOWE Interested Party, reference: 20022096 Dear Examiners, 1 Background Noise adversely affects Birds New evidence shows that human generated noise masks communication of crucial information between birds, which can therefore affect bird reproduction and so adversely affect survival of bird species. The attached provide summaries of the research, which is restricted access document. For Cleve Hill Solar, the constant background from the inverters, transformers and other equipment, would have this effect. What is unknown, as I believe that wind noise has not been modelled, is the increase in wind noise from the panels, fencing and all the associated infrastructure. So the actual noise impact may be much greater than expected, and hence the impact on birds, and indeed humans, may be a lot worse. So the Applicant needs to provide detailed modelling of all these noise impacts. 2 Land Use and effects on Carbon A recent article by George Monbiot relating to the carbon impact of land use, refers to a Nature paper which shows how that farming has a much higher carbon cost than natural ecosystems: Nature estimates that natural ecosystems can store 9 tonnes of carbon more per person than farming would. He notes the article says that beef has a carbon cost of 643 kg, while lamb 749 kg. As Cleve Hill propose to graze sheep, this would add to the loss of carbon sequestration because of covering the area with PV panels, thus making a huge carbon cost. He says that "some people try to argue that extensive farming systems – particularly grazing livestock – “mimic nature”. While some livestock farms are much better than others, there are none in this country that look like natural ecosystems”. In other words the proposals have a large carbon impact. I attach the original article, with the Nature Abstract, and this also has references for “Does landscape-scale conservation management enhance the provision of ecosystem services? Kathy H. Hodder, Adrian C. Newton, Elena Cantarello & Lorretta Perrella”, and “Investing in nature could boost UK economy www.ceh.ac.uk/news- and-media/news/investing-nature-could-boost-uk-economy ” which refers to: “Trends in Natural Capital, Ecosystem Services and Economic Development in Dorset Valuing Nature Research Project Report”, attached below. So this new information shows that the Applicant’s proposals would have severe repercussions on carbon, nature and the economy. Further evidence of the carbon sequestration of land is shown in “Wilding” by Isabella Tree (21/03/2019, Publisher: Pan Macmillan ISBN: 9781509805105), which reports (page 287) that Graham Harvey found ‘Glomalin’ is a key part of the sequestration process, and it also helps the vital mycorrhizae which are essential for a healthy soil. As the soil is the key to life itself, the construction of the power station and its coverage of a huge area of soil would cause immense damage and reduce carbon sequestration and the life within and above the soil. 2 Benefits of Nature As well as the reference above (“Investing in nature could boost UK economy www.ceh.ac.uk/news-and- media/news/investing-nature-could-boost-uk-economy submitted by Simon Williams”),the Executive Summary of “The Natural Choice” DEFRA’s publication of 2011, (attached below) which is still current,shows an earlier recognition of the value of nature, It includes (with my emphasis): “1. Nature is sometimes taken for granted and undervalued. But people cannot flourish without the benefits and services our natural environment provides. Nature is a complex, interconnected system. A healthy, properly functioning natural environment is the foundation of sustained economic growth, prospering communities and personal wellbeing. 2.The Government wants this to be the first generation to leave the natural environment of England in a better state than it inherited. To achieve so much means taking action across sectors rather than treating environmental concerns in isolation. It requires us all to put the value of nature at the heart of our decision-making – in Government, local communities and businesses. 9. The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity study shows that protected natural areas can yield returns many times higher than the cost of their protection. There are multi-million pound opportunities available from greener goods and services, and from markets that protect nature’s services. 13. The NEA and the Marmot Review, Fair Society, Healthy Lives, demonstrate the positive impact that nature has on mental and physical health. High-quality natural environments foster healthy neighbourhoods; green spaces encourage social activity and reduce crime. The natural environment can help children’s learning. 15. We need to make enhancing nature a central goal of social action across the country. We want to make it easier for people to do the right thing, with action in the health and education systems and in our communities.” The website: https://valuing-nature.net/ provides a lot of more recent evidence of the benefits of nature. Item 13, quoted above, has been supported by a lot of evidence since 2011 - recent research shows that a two- hour “dose” of nature a week significantly boosts health and wellbeing, research suggests, even if you simply sit and enjoy the peace. see: "www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jun/13/two-hour-dose-nature-weekly-boosts-health-study-finds This says: "The physical and mental health benefits of time spent in parks, woods or the beach are well known, but the new research is the first major study into how long is needed to produce the effect. If confirmed by future research, two hours in nature could join five a day of fruit and veg and 150 minutes of exercise a week as official health advice. The finding is based on interviews with 20,000 people in England about their activity in the previous week. Of those who spent little or no time in nature, a quarter reported poor health and almost half said they were not satisfied with their life, a standard measure of wellbeing. In contrast, just one-seventh of those who spent at least two hours in nature said their health was poor, while a third were not satisfied with their life.” Hence this means that Nature must take priority over the proposed Solar Power Station. Thank you, Best wishes Chris Lowe Signal complexity communicates aggressive intent during contests, but the process is disrupted by noise Original report, with restricted access, on: https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsbl.2018.0841 Contestants use displays to signal their aggressive intent and settle disputes before they escalate. For birds, this is often in the form of song, which can vary in structural complexity. The role of song complexity in signalling aggressive intent has not been fully established, and its efficacy could be influenced by background noise levels. Using playback experiments, we found that in European robins, Erithacus rubecula, song complexity signalled sender aggression and affected receiver response. However, increased noise impacted the ability of contestants to adjust response based on opponent song complexity. These findings provide new evidence regarding the use of acoustic signal complexity for assessing opponent aggression and that noise can influence contest behaviour by interrupting this process, which could impose fitness consequences. Summary from the Guardian www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jun/20/twitter-storm-noise-pollution-creates-havoc-for-birds-study-sh ows Human activities could be affecting reproduction and even normal social behaviour Fiona Harvey Environment correspondent A Belfast university study found human noise pollution directly influenced robins’ ability to communicate with each other. Birds are even more disrupted by their noisy neighbours than had been thought previously, researchers have found. And human activities could be preventing birds from reproducing and even developing normal social behaviour and keeping the peace. A study by Queen’s University Belfast found that when European robins were subjected to human produced noises their behaviour changed. Background noise appeared to mask the communication of crucial information between birds. While aggressive communication is common and birds respond to it, interference through noise can lead to the birds mistaking the signals. Gareth Arnott, senior lecturer and researcher from the Institute for Global Food Security at Queen’s University Belfast, said: “We found that bird song structure can communicate aggressive intent, enabling birds to assess their opponent. But human-made noise can disrupt this crucial information passed between them, by masking the complexity of their songs used for acquiring resources, such as territory and space for nesting.” Birds can end up in situations all too familiar to humans. “The birds receive incomplete information on their opponent’s intent and do not appropriately adjust their response,” explained Arnott. “Where song is disguised by background noise, in some cases the male ends up fighting more vigorously than he should, but at other times gives in too easily.” This is the first time it has been shown that aggressive communication is being disrupted by noise. Arnott said the purpose of birdsong was twofold – to attract mates and defend territory. Birds already face an array of human-made dangers, from pesticides and intensive farming to shooting and poisoning. But noise had often been overlooked, the paper in Biology Letters found. A spokesperson for the RSPB said: “Everyone is becoming increasingly concerned that nature is in crisis in the UK, with one in 10 of our wildlife species at threat of extinction. Many of our birds’ populations are already facing a serious crisis as a result of habitat loss, climate change and other human activities.