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IFA2 UK Onshore Development Applicant’s Report to Inform Habitats Regulations Assessment May 2016 Date Page 1 IFA2 UK Onshore Development Applicant’s Report to Inform Habitat Regulations Assessment Document reference IFA2-ENV-ASM-004 Version 2.0 Prepared by TEP on behalf of National Grid IFA2 Ltd Address Genesis Centre Birchwood Science Park Warrington WA3 7BH Telephone 01925 844004 Fax 01925 844002 Email [email protected] Contact IFA2 [email protected] 0800 0194576 Contents 1. INTRODUCTION 5 2. PROJECT DESCRIPTION 9 3. SUMMARY OF SCREENING STAGE (HRA STAGE 1) 23 4. NATURA SITES BASELINE INFORMATION 24 5. IMPACT ASSESSMENT 48 6. IN-COMBINATION ASSESSMENT 69 7. CONCLUSIONS ON SITE INTEGRITY 79 TABLES Table 4.1: Protected sites located of relevance to the HRA Assessment including component SSSIs and supporting habitat associated with SINCs. Table 4.2. SSSI/SPA species and other waterbird assemblage species recorded within the Chilling survey area* during the winter bird surveys 2013-2014 and 2014-2015. Table 4.3. SSSI/SPA species and other waterbird species recorded within the Chilling survey area during the Intertidal bird surveys 2013-2014 and 2014-2015. Table 4.4. SSSI/SPA species and other waterbird assemblage species recorded within the Daedalus survey area during the winter bird surveys 2013-2014, 2014-2015 and 2015-2016. Table 4.5. SSSI/SPA species and BoCC/protected species recorded within the Daedalus survey area during the Intertidal bird surveys 2013-2014, 2014-2015 and 2015-2016. Table 4.6. Conservation Objectives for Natura 2000 sites included in IFA2 Stage 2 Report to Inform Appropriate Assessment (Scoped out receptors are greyed out) Table 4.7: Potential environmental effects associated with cable laying on Portsmouth Harbour SPA birds Table 5.1. Noise predictions at Chilling for different onshore and intertidal works activities Table 5.2. Noise predictions for at Daedalus for different onshore and intertidal works activities Page 3 FIGURES Figure 1.1: Site Location Plan Figure 1.2: European sites within a 20km radius of the IFA2 Interconnector development Figure 4.1: Extent of bird survey area at Chilling Figure 4.2: Extent of bird survey area at Daedalus Figure 5.1: Predicted noise levels onshore at Chilling for different works activities Figure 5.2: Predicted noise levels onshore at Daedalus for different works activities. Figure 6.1: In-combination effects assessment APPENDICES Appendix 1: Detailed Project Description (onshore and offshore). Appendix 2: Summary of Stage 1 Assessment of Likely Significant Effect. Appendix 3: Natura 2000 sites citation sheets. Appendix 4: Key environmental conditions that support site integrity for Natura site component SSSIs. Applicant’s Report to Inform Appropriate Assessment 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 Project Overview 1.1.1 National Grid IFA2 Limited (NG IFA2 Ltd) and Réseau de Transport d'Electricité (RTE) are jointly developing an electricity interconnector project to connect the British and French electricity networks in Hampshire and Normandy which would enable the import and export of power. 1.1.2 IFA2 would be a high voltage direct current (HVDC) electricity interconnector with an approximate capacity of 1 gigawatt (GW) which would allow the transfer of electrical power between the UK and France via subsea cables. The interconnector would be bi-directional allowing the import and export of electricity between the UK and France. 1.1.3 HVDC offers the most efficient technology for the bulk import and export of electricity over long distances with fewer losses than an AC system. It requires a converter station at each end of the HVDC link to convert the HVDC power to high voltage alternating current (HVAC) power for use on the HVAC electricity systems operated in GB and France and vice versa dependent on the direction of flow. 1.1.4 IFA2 would be around 240km long, connecting to the GB transmission system at Chilling on the south east Hampshire coast, and to the French transmission system at the Tourbe 400kV substation in the Lower Normandy region of France as shown diagrammatically on Inset 1.1. A site location plan is included at Figure 1.1. Inset 1.1: IFA2 Interconnector route Applicant’s Report to Inform Appropriate Assessment 1.2 Proximity to European Sites 1.2.1 Figure 1.2 illustrates the location of European sites within a 20km radius of the IFA2 Interconnector development. The proposed cable route passes through both the Solent and Southampton Water SPA and the Solent and Dorset Coast pSPA. In total 16 European sites are located within 20km radius of the IFA2 Interconnector development. 1.3 The Habitats Regulation Assement Process 1.3.1 SACs, SPAs and Ramsar sites are all European designations (also known as Natura 2000 sites) and are notified in the UK through the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2010 (as amended 2012) (the Habitats Regulations) which is the UK implementation of the European Habitats Directive1. 1.3.2 Under the Habitats Regulations the granting of approval (i.e. planning permissions, licenses and consents) for developments is restricted if they are likely to have a significant effect on an SAC or SPA/Ramsar site. If the development is likely to have a significant effect, then an appropriate assessment must be made by a competent authority of its implications for the site in view of the site’s conservation objectives. 1.3.3 Regulation 61 of the Habitats Regulations defines the procedure for the assessment of the implications of plans or projects on European sites. Under this Regulation, if a project is unconnected with site management and is likely to significantly affect the designated site, the competent authority must undertake an ‘appropriate assessment’ (Regulation 61(1)). 1.3.4 Guidance (EC, 2001) on undertaking assessment of plans or projects that may impact upon designated European sites recommends a staged approach to the assessment process: Screening (Stage 1): The process of identifying potentially relevant European sites and the likely impacts of a project upon the designated features of a European site, either alone or in combination with other plans and projects, and considering whether the impacts are likely to be significant. Appropriate Assessment (Stage 2): Assessment of the impacts, taking into account proposed mitigation measures, on the integrity of the European site, either alone or in combination with other plans and projects, with regard to the site’s structure and function and its conservation objectives. If it cannot be concluded beyond reasonable scientific doubt that the project would not adversely affect site integrity then development consent cannot be issued unless the steps set out in Stages 3 and 4 are successfully concluded. 1 Directive92/43/EEC, amended by Directive 97/62/EC Applicant’s Report to Inform Appropriate Assessment Assessment of Alternative Solutions (Stage 3): Examining alternative ways of achieving the objectives of the project, to establish whether there are solutions that would avoid an adverse effect on the integrity of a European site(s). Assessment of IROPI (Stage 4): If it is shown that there are no alternative solutions then the project can receive development consent only if it can also be demonstrated that it should proceed for imperative reasons of overriding public interest (IROPI). Where IROPI can be shown then compensatory measures required to maintain the overall coherence of the site or integrity of the European site network will need to be identified and secured. 1.3.5 All four stages of the process are referred to cumulatively as the Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA), to clearly distinguish the whole process from the step within it referred to as the ‘appropriate assessment’. 1.3.6 In respect of Step 2, guidance on what constitutes the integrity of a European site has been provided by the European Commission (EC, 2001) and adopted by the UK Government. In this guidance, integrity is defined as: ‘the coherence of the site’s ecological structure and function, across its whole area, which enables it to sustain the habitat, complex of habitats and/or populations of species for which the site has been designated’. 1.3.7 Guidance within The Habitats Regulations Assessment Handbook (DTA Publishing, accessed 19 April 2016) states that: ‘The ‘integrity’ of a site can also be considered to be the quality or condition of being whole or complete; or in a dynamic ecological context, as having the sense of resilience and ability to evolve in ways which are favourable to conservation. A site can be described as having a high degree of integrity where the inherent potential for meeting site conservation objectives is realised, the capacity for self-repair and self-renewal under dynamic conditions is maintained, and a minimum of external management support is required.’ 1.4 Purpose of the Report 1.4.1 In the UK, IFA2 would comprise onshore and offshore components. For the main part, these components are covered by different consent regimes. The ‘onshore’ elements of IFA2 and parts of the offshore elements to the Mean Low Water Springs (MLWS) require planning permission under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. A Marine Licence is needed under the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 for installation of the subsea cables from the MHWS. The intertidal area, between the MLWS and MWHS, is an area of ‘overlap’ between the onshore and offshore consenting regimes – i.e. those works require both planning permission and a Marine Licence. Applicant’s Report to Inform Appropriate Assessment 1.4.2 Given the overlap between onshore and offshore elements of IFA2, it has been agreed with stakeholders (Fareham Borough Council - FBC, Marine Management Organisation - MMO, Natural England and Environment Agency) that a single Habitats Regulation Assessment process is appropriate to cover all UK aspects of the Proposed Development.

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