Renewable Energy Planning Guidance Note 3 The development of onshore wind turbines Current Document Status Version V4 Status Approved Date 17/12/13 Approving body PPAP Responsible Officer NDH Date approved 25/11/11 Version History Date Version Author/Editor Comments 25/11/11 V1 PR PPAP adopted version 17/07/12 V2 EIW Revisions 04/06/13 V3 NDH Revision relating to Historic Environment 03/02/14 V4 NDH Revisions relating to Noise; Proximity to roads/railways; fees; requirements to consult prior to submission of application and bird guidance. 0 V3 June 2013 The Development of Onshore Wind Turbines in Cornwall This guidance document has been prepared to assist all parties involved in the renewable energy development process. It is intended that the guidance document will be adopted by the Council as a “Supplementary Planning Document” following the adoption of the Council’s Core Strategy proposed after 2013. Until then the status of this document is that it has been approved by Members of the Council’s Planning Policy Advisory Panel and while it will not attract the full weight of an SPD document will attract some weight in decisions reached on planning applications. Introduction This guidance note aims to provide planning advice in respect of onshore wind. The Government has set targets to increase electricity and/or heat generation from renewable sources. Cornwall Council is keen to promote the generation of electricity and/or heat from renewable sources in Cornwall in order to contribute towards a more sustainable future. This guidance note is part of a series of planning guidance notes for Renewable Energy prepared by Cornwall Council. Other guidance notes include: 1. <50kW solar PV and solar thermal 2. >50kW solar PV 3. Onshore wind 4. Anaerobic Digestion 5. Hydropower 6. Biomass 7. Heat pumps 8. Deep Geothermal 9. Advanced Energy from Waste These guidance notes will be regularly reviewed and updated and can be viewed on our website at www.cornwall.gov.uk/renewableenergy We hope that you find this planning guidance useful but if you have any queries please do not hesitate to contact the Planning, Housing and Regeneration Service at [email protected] or ring 0300 1234 151. We continuously seek to improve the quality of the advice and guidance that we offer and we would be happy to receive comments, suggestions or images which may improve this guidance document. 1 V3 June 2013 Contents Page Wind Resource in Cornwall 3 Feed in Tariff 4 Renewable Obligation Certificate 4 Definition of Turbine Size and Associated Information 4 Anatomy of a Wind Turbine 6 Getting Started 6 Environmental Impact Assessment 8 Issues to be Considered in any Planning Application: 11 a) Landscape Sensitivity and Visual Amenity 15 b) Ecology 21 c) Historic Environment 25 Case Study 1: Garlenick Wind Turbines 28 d) Noise 29 Case Study 1: Gorran Community Wind 32 e) Shadow Flicker 34 f) Public Rights of Way 35 g) Soils and Hydrology 36 h) Access and Servicing Requirements 37 i) Aviation and Telecommunications 38 j) Community Involvement and Benefits 39 k) Decommissioning 40 Appendix 1 Electricity Generating Capacity 42 Appendix 2 Environmental Impact Assessment 43 Appendix 3 Information Required for a Wind Turbine Planning Application 45 Appendix 4 Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment 46 Appendix 5 Landscape Site Assessment Small Scale Wind Development 48 Appendix 6 Wind Turbine Planning Application Advisory Note 53 Appendix 7 Wind Turbine Template Planning Conditions 66 Appendix 8 Cornwall Council / RSPB Interim Guidance for Birds and 88 Single/Several Wind Turbines 2 V3 June 2013 Wind Resource in Cornwall Cornwall has some of the highest average wind speeds of any European country. The map shown on the right, shows where the highest average wind speeds are in Cornwall; the darker the area the higher the wind speeds. Cornwall has high average annual wind speed of 6.5 metres per second. This wind resource was first harnessed when the UK’s commercial scale wind farm was constructed at Delabole in 1991 with an installed capacity (potential maximum electrical output) of 4MW. There are now 9 operational commercial wind farms in Cornwall with a total installed capacity of 58 MW and the Council has produced a guide showing their locations; an extract showing these locations is reproduced below. 3 V3 June 2013 Feed in Tariff The Feed in Tariff (FiT) scheme essentially provides a financial subsidy towards the uptake of renewable energy technologies, and includes electricity generated from wind turbines. In respect of wind turbines, the FiT scheme applies for a period of 20 years and for domestic customers the income is tax free and index linked for the same period. There has been a growing interest from both community groups and individual investors in installing single or multiple turbines of the very small to medium size and the Council is keen to assist these organisations. Renewable Obligation Certificates Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROCs) are another form of financial subsidy and are available for schemes of 5MW or more. (See http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/meeting_energy/renewable_ener/renew_obs /renew_obs.aspx). With the output of turbines increasing this tariff may apply to single or double turbine applications in the future. However operators of any new wind turbines with a capacity of between 50kW and 5MW have the one-off option of applying under the Renewable Obligations Orders (ROO) or the Feed in Tariff (FiT) scheme. This is done using the ROO-FiT accreditation process via the Ofgem Renewables and CHP Register. Once the turbine in question has been accredited under the scheme chosen, the operator of the station cannot switch to the other scheme. Definition of Turbine Size and Associated Information Turbine Size Throughout this guidance the description of a wind turbine in kilowatts (kW) refers to the rated power or installed generating capacity of that wind turbine. That is its maximum electrical output in ideal and consistent wind conditions. The power generated by a turbine in relation to the electricity used per annum for a typical house in Cornwall is set out in Appendix 1. For the purposes of this guidance document Cornwall Council uses the following definitions as used in previous Council reports and studies based on tip height of wind turbines from ground level; Domestic <18 metres Very Small 18-25 metres Small 26-60 metres Medium 61-99 metres Large 100-150 metres 4 V3 June 2013 Existing Tall Structures in Cornwall In order to visualise how these different turbine heights relate to other structures the illustration below sets out some existing structures, and their heights, within Cornwall. 5 V3 June 2013 Anatomy of a wind turbine Rotor Diameter The diameter of the rotor refers to the distance between the swept area of the blade tips of the wind turbine. Hub Height The hub height is the distance from the base of the wind turbine at ground level to the centre point of the turbine rotor hub. Blade Tip Height This is the distance from the base of the turbine at ground level to the tip of the wind turbine blade at the highest point from the ground. Planning for Wind Energy Development in Cornwall The Planning and Regeneration function of Cornwall Council is structured within different teams. The Local Planning Team prepares planning policy and the Development Management Team deal with planning applications. The relevant Area Planning Committees would normally determine any planning applications but if the proposal has an installed capacity of 5 MW or greater, covers an area of 2 hectares or more or is considered to be strategically significant it would be considered by the Strategic Planning Committee. Planning Role in Renewable Energy Contact Details Team Local Develops policy and guidance [email protected] Planning across Cornwall Tel: 0300 1234 151 Team Strategic Determines planning [email protected] Development applications for strategic Tel: 0300 1234 151 Management development across Cornwall Getting Started Initial Site Selection Wind Resource This is the fundamental requirement in order for a wind turbine to be financially viable and will be part of an applicant’s initial feasibility study. Most wind turbines require an annual average wind speed of at least 6 metres per second to be considered operationally viable. Average wind speed data is available from a number of sources. The wind speed at a particular site may however be affected by topography, screening (by tall buildings or trees), or even turbidity from existing wind turbines in the area, and therefore in some instances it may be prudent to measure the average wind speed at the site over a 12 month period. If an anemometer is needed to monitor 6 V3 June 2013 wind speed at a prospective site a temporary planning consent will be required. This has a cost implication and may not be viable for individual wind turbine proposals. The met office provides a ‘Virtual Met Mast’ wind data service for wind turbine developers which can be obtained via the link: Virtual Met Mast™ http://wwwpre.metoffice.gov.uk/energy/renewables/wind/site/metmast Grid Connection Some of Cornwall’s existing rural electricity supply lines may need to be upgraded to allow even a very small wind turbine to be connected to the electricity grid. Therefore initial discussions with the local grid provider, Western Power Distribution, are essential to determine the cost of a future grid connection. A wind turbine supplier/developer may be able to undertake these discussions on your behalf. This will obviously not be an issue in circumstances where it is not proposed to connect the wind turbine to the electricity grid, for example where the electricity generated would be used directly, or where the electricity generated would be stored using batteries.