Environmental Impact Assessment CAEL Wind Farm, Great Valley Manchester September 2012 EIA for a Wind Farm at Great Valley Manchester by CAEL September 2012 Table of Contents 1.0 Introduction ........................................................................................................................................... 6 1.1 Background and Project Rationale ................................................................................................. 6 2.0 Project Description ............................................................................................................................. 11 2.1 Project Location .............................................................................................................................. 11 2.2 Project Design ................................................................................................................................. 14 2.3 Transportation and Road Widening ............................................................................................. 25 2.4 Access Road Design ....................................................................................................................... 29 Figure 12: Layout of Access Routes to Turbines ................................................................................... 30 2.5 Project Schedule and Project Management Team ...................................................................... 31 2.6 Decommissioning............................................................................................................................ 31 3.0 Regulatory Framework ....................................................................................................................... 32 3.1 Applicable Policies .......................................................................................................................... 32 3.2 Applicable Legislation..................................................................................................................... 34 3.3 Recommended Standards ............................................................................................................... 38 3.4 The Application Process ................................................................................................................ 38 4.0 Description of the Environment....................................................................................................... 40 4.1 Physical Baseline .............................................................................................................................. 40 4.1.1 General Climate ....................................................................................................................... 40 4.1.2 Ambient Air Quality ............................................................................................................... 42 4.1.3 Ambient Noise Levels ............................................................................................................ 42 4.1.4 Topography .............................................................................................................................. 43 4.1.5 Geomorphology ...................................................................................................................... 43 4.1.6 Soil ............................................................................................................................................. 43 4.1.7 Geology .................................................................................................................................... 45 4.1.8 Hydrology................................................................................................................................. 47 4.2 Biological Baseline ........................................................................................................................... 49 4.2.1 Vegetation ................................................................................................................................ 49 4.2.2 Avifauna ................................................................................................................................... 52 4.2.3 Other Animals ......................................................................................................................... 56 4.3 Socio-Economic Baseline .............................................................................................................. 57 4.3.1 Demography ............................................................................................................................ 57 4.3.2 Housing .................................................................................................................................... 58 4.3.3 Utilities ...................................................................................................................................... 58 4.3.4 Municipal Services .................................................................................................................. 59 1 | P a g e Environmental & Engineering Managers Ltd. EIA for a Wind Farm at Great Valley Manchester by CAEL September 2012 4.4 Economy .......................................................................................................................................... 60 4.5 Land Use ........................................................................................................................................... 64 4.5.1 Historical Land Use ................................................................................................................ 64 4.5.2 Current Land Use ................................................................................................................... 64 4.5.3 Heritage Sites ........................................................................................................................... 65 5.0 Community Development: Perspective of Residents on Proposed Development ................... 66 5.1 Methodology .................................................................................................................................... 66 5.2 General Profile of Respondents .................................................................................................... 66 5.2.1 Community Participation ....................................................................................................... 66 5.2.2 Gender and Age Distributions .............................................................................................. 67 5.2.3 Educational Profile ................................................................................................................. 67 5.2.4 Employment and Income ...................................................................................................... 68 5.2.5 Land Tenure ............................................................................................................................ 69 5.2.6 Community Utilities and Infrastructure .............................................................................. 69 5.2.7 Resource Usage and Management ........................................................................................ 73 5.2.8 Natural Disasters ..................................................................................................................... 76 5.3 Community Organisation ............................................................................................................... 76 5.4 Social Assessment of Impacts ....................................................................................................... 78 5.4.1 Positive Impacts ...................................................................................................................... 79 5.4.2 Potential Negative Impacts.................................................................................................... 79 6.0 Identification of Environmental Impacts ........................................................................................ 80 6.1 Potential Negative Impacts ............................................................................................................ 82 6.1.1 Construction Phase ................................................................................................................. 82 6.1.2 Operational Phase ................................................................................................................... 86 6.2 Significant Environmental and Social Impacts ........................................................................ 105 6.3 Cumulative Impacts – Operational Phase ................................................................................ 131 6.4 Potential Positive Impacts........................................................................................................... 131 6.4.1 Construction Phase .............................................................................................................. 131 6.4.2 Operational Phase ................................................................................................................ 132 6.5 Summary of Significant Impacts ................................................................................................ 137 7.0 Mitigation Measures ......................................................................................................................... 140 8.0 Emergency Preparedness and