Legal Preconditions for Wind Power Implementation in Sweden and Denmark
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2006:12 LICENTIATE T H E SI S Legal Preconditions for Wind Power Implementation in Sweden and Denmark Maria Pettersson Luleå University of Technology Department of Business Administration and Social Sciences Division of Jurisprudence 2006:12|: 102-1757|: -c -- 06 ⁄12 -- Legal Preconditions for Wind Power Implementation in Sweden and Denmark MARIA PETTERSSON Luleå University of Technology Department of Social Science Division of Jurisprudence 97187 Luleå, Sweden Phone: +46 920 492195 Fax: +46 920 492035 E-mail: Maria.Petterssonȱ@ltu.se Licentiate Thesis 2006 ABSTRACT Swedish energy policy relies heavily on the promotion of renewable energy re- sources, in particular wind energy and in 2002 the Swedish Government adopted a national planning goal of a yearly wind power generation of 10 TWh by 2015, which implies a substantial increase from the current 0.6 TWh level. The main purpose of this study is to analyse relevant functions of the Swedish law with reference to the implementation of wind power; the overarching question at issue being in what respects the law impedes respectively facilitates the development of wind power, and to compare the results from the Swedish analysis with the corresponding functions in Danish law, and b) to present some implications for the choice between different legislative measures to meet the Swedish wind power planning goal. The results are based on in-depth studies of relevant legal rules and case law, and the overall indications are: a) on one hand, that several of the Swedish legal rules in connection with the overarching management and use of land and water areas are vaguely formulated and provide an extensive room for discretion, which makes the outcomes unpredictable and increase the uncertainties associ- ated with wind power investments, b) on the other hand, that certain specific rules regarding the location of the windmills, together with the requirement to objectively assess alternative sites for the installation have shown to seriously hamper the establishment of windmills in Sweden, c) that the strong support for the municipal self-governance in connection with the system for physical plan- ning in Sweden implies that great stress is laid on the existence of territorial plans for wind power, which in turn implies that windmills are unlikely to be es- tablished without municipal consent, and finally d) that the installation of wind- mills on Swedish territory may require as many as five different permits, which imply time-consuming (and hence costly) processes with unpredictable out- comes. The results from the analysis of the corresponding Danish system reveal a quite different situation; the specific and precise regulations regarding the instal- lation of windmills in Denmark imply a lot less room for discretion which reduce the uncertainty in connection with the investment decision. Moreover, that the vertically integrated planning system in Denmark greatly enhances the possibili- ties to implement national planning objectives on the regional, municipal and local level. i ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS........................................................................................vii Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION...............................................................................1 1.1 Background and Purpose of the Thesis ...................................................1 1.2 Methodology ...............................................................................................2 1.3 Relevant Functions with Reference to the Installation of Wind- mills..................................................................................................................5 1.3.1 Resource Utilization ..............................................................................5 1.3.2 Physical Planning .................................................................................7 1.3.3 Environmental Considerations.............................................................7 1.3.4 Authorization.........................................................................................7 1.3.5 Public Participation...............................................................................8 1.4 The Basis of Environmental Law .............................................................9 1.4.1 Sustainable Development – Concept or Legal Principle? .................10 1.4.2 Research in the Field of Environmental Law....................................12 Chapter 2 ON THE INFLUENCE OF INSTITUTIONS IN MATTERS OF IMPLEMENTING ENVIRONMENTAL OBJECTIVES................................15 2.1 Institutional Theory .................................................................................16 2.2 Institutional Change ................................................................................19 Chapter 3 WIND ENERGY ...............................................................................23 3.1 Energy from the Wind.............................................................................23 3.1.1 Past and Present ..................................................................................23 3.2 Wind Power Vis-à-vis the Environment ................................................25 3.2.1 Visual Intrusion...................................................................................26 3.2.1 Noise.....................................................................................................26 3.2.3 Bird mortality.......................................................................................26 3.2.4 Telecommunication Interference........................................................27 3.2.5 Safety Aspects.......................................................................................27 3.2.6 Environmental Impacts of Offshore Installations .............................28 Chapter 4 THE CASE OF SWEDEN................................................................29 4.1 Introduction – Why Wind Power? .........................................................29 4.2 The Right to the Resource.......................................................................31 4.3 Law on Land Use and Planning in Sweden ...........................................33 4.3.1 The Concept of Sustainable Development in the Swedish Envi- ronmental Code....................................................................................34 4.3.2 National Physical Planning ................................................................35 iii 4.3.2.1 Basic Provisions Concerning the Management of Land and Water Areas.....................................................................................36 4.3.2.2 Special Provisions Concerning Land and Water Management in Certain Areas ..............................................................................48 4.3.3 Conclusive Remarks on the Basic and Special Resource Man- agement Provisions Vis-à-vis Wind Power Development ..................54 4.3.4 The LocationRequirement..................................................................56 4.3.4.1 The Location Requirement in Practice ...........................................59 4.3.4.2 Implications of the Application of the Location Requirement .......61 4.3.5 Local and Regional Planning – The Planning and Building Act .....63 4.3.5.1 Overall Objectives..........................................................................63 4.3.5.2 Consideration Rules........................................................................64 4.3.5.3 The Plans.........................................................................................66 4.3.5.4 Building Permits.............................................................................70 4.3.5.5 The StateControl ............................................................................71 4.3.6 Concluding Remarks on the Local and Regional Planning..............71 4.4 Specific Energy Related Legislation.......................................................73 4.4.1 Municipal Energy Planning................................................................73 4.4.2 Grid Connection Issues .......................................................................74 4.4.2.1 The ElectricityAct..........................................................................74 4.5 Additional Environmental Requirements..............................................75 4.5.1 The General Rules of Consideration ..................................................75 4.5.1.1 Rules of Obligation .........................................................................76 4.5.1.2 Cost-Benefit Assessment................................................................78 4.5.1.3 The Remediation Responsibility.....................................................79 4.5.2 Environmental Quality Standards......................................................80 4.5.3 The Permit Process – Implications for the Diffusion of Wind Power....................................................................................................82 4.5.3.1 Wind Power as an Environmentally Hazardous Activity ...............82 4.5.3.2 Legal Implications of Windmill Installations without Permit ........85 4.5.3.3 The Government’s Permissibility Assessment and the Mu- nicipal Right of Veto.......................................................................86 4.5.4 Legal Preconditions for Offshore Windmill Installations .................88 4.5.5