Appendix 14.1 SLVIA Technical Report Land Use Consultants Ltd. December 2017 Neart na Gaoithe Offshore Wind Farm: Seascape, Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment Technical Appendix Prepared by LUC for Neart na Gaoithe Offshore Wind Limited December 2017 Planning & EIA LUC EDINBURGH Offices also in: Land Use Consultants Ltd Registered in England Design 28 Stafford Street London Registered number: 2549296 Landscape Planning Edinburgh Bristol Registered Office: Landscape Management EH3 7BD Glasgow 43 Chalton Street Ecology T +44 (0)131 202 1616 London NW1 1JD Mapping & Visualisation [email protected] FS 566056 EMS 566057 LUC uses 100% recycled paper Contents 1 Introduction 1 Purpose of this Report 1 The Project 1 Tidal Range and Turbine Height 3 Consultation 4 Structure of the Report 8 Glossary 9 2 Approach and Methodology 11 Introduction 11 Guidance 11 Study Area 11 Scope of the Assessment 12 Overview of the SLVIA Methodology 13 Method for Assessing Effects on Landscape and Coastal Character 13 Method for Assessing Visual Effects 18 Cumulative Landscape & Visual Impact Assessment (CLVIA) 22 Assessing Cumulative Landscape Effects 24 Assessing Cumulative Visual Effects 25 Visualisations 26 Limitations 29 3 Baseline 30 Introduction 30 Coastal Character 30 Onshore Landscape Character 31 Landscape Designations 32 Visual Amenity 38 Visibility 46 4 Potential Effects and Mitigation 48 Effects During Construction 48 Effects During Operation 49 5 Effects on Coastal and Landscape Character 52 Introduction 52 Coastal Character 52 Landscape Character 58 Summary of Effects on Coastal and Landscape Character 65 Implications for Designated Landscapes 66 6 Effects on Visual Amenity 71 Introduction 71 Viewpoint Assessment 71 Effects on Visual Receptors 74 7 Cumulative Assessment 78 Introduction 78 Cumulative Baseline 78 Assessment of Cumulative Effects 82 Cumulative Effects on Visual Amenity 83 8 Summary and Conclusions 86 9 References 89 Annex 1 91 Neart na Gaoithe Offshore Wind Farm 91 Design Analysis 91 Introduction 91 Existing guidance on offshore wind farm design 92 Previous work 93 Scope of this Analysis 94 Turbine Layout 95 Turbine Blade Tip Height 97 Conclusions 98 Annex 2 99 Seascape Character Assessment: Aberdeen to Holy Island 99 Annex 3 100 Viewpoint Assessment 100 Night Time Viewpoint Assessment 127 Annex 4 135 Implications for East Lothian AGLVs 135 Areas of Great Landscape Value 135 Tables Table 1.1 Consultation 4 Table 2.1 Sensitivity of Regional Seascape Units (see Annex 2) 14 Table 2.2 Aspects Influencing Susceptibility of Landscape Receptors to Wind Turbines 15 Table 2.3 Sensitivity of landscape receptors 16 Table 2.4 Magnitude of Impact on Landscape Receptors 17 Table 2.5 Susceptibility of Visual Receptors 19 Table 2.6 Sensitivity of Visual Receptors 20 Table 2.7 Magnitude of Impact on Visual Receptors 21 Table 3.1 Regional Seascape Units 30 Table 3.2 Level 2 LCTs included in the assessment 32 Table 3.3 Local Landscape Designations 34 Table 3.4 Review of Gardens and Designed Landscapes 35 Table 3.5 Representative Viewpoints 42 Table 3.6 Representative Night-time Viewpoints 45 Table 3.7 Viewpoints illustrated with wirelines 45 Table 3.8 Visibility from Leuchars 47 Table 4.1 Consent conditions for the Originally Consented Project relevant to Seascape Landscape and Visual impacts 50 Table 5.1 Sensitivity of Regional Seascape Units 52 Table 5.2 Assessment of Effects on Regional Seascape Units 54 Table 5.3 Assessment of Effects on Landscape Character Types 59 Table 6.1 Viewpoint assessment 71 Table 7.1 Offshore Wind Farms in the cumulative baseline 78 Table 7.2 Onshore Wind Farms in the cumulative baseline 80 Table 7.3 Cumulative effects at Representative Viewpoints 83 Table 7.4 Cumulative effects at night time representative viewpoints 85 Figures Maps Figure 14.1 (Volume 3) SLVIA Study Area Figure 14.2a (Volume 3) Zone of Theoretical Visibility: Turbine tip height Figure 14.2b (Volume 3) Zone of Theoretical Visibility: Turbine tip height (A0) Figure 14.3a (Volume 3) Zone of Theoretical Visibility: Turbine hub height Figure 14.3b (Volume 3) Zone of Theoretical Visibility: Turbine hub height (A0) Figure 14.4 (Volume 3) Coastal Character Figure 14.5 (Volume 3) Landscape Character Figure 14.6 (Volume 3) Landscape designations Figure 14.7 (Volume 3) Access and recreation Figure 14.8 (Volume 3) Wind Farms within 65km of Neart na Gaoithe Figure 14.9a (Volume 3) Cumulative ZTV: Inch Cape and Seagreen Figure 14.9b (Volume 3) Cumulative ZTV: Inch Cape and Seagreen (A0) Figure 14.10 (Volume 3) Cumulative ZTV: Other offshore wind farms Figure 14.11 (Volume 3) Cumulative ZTV: Onshore Group 1 Figure 14.12 (Volume 3) Cumulative ZTV: Onshore Group 2 Figure 14.13 (Volume 3) Cumulative ZTV: Onshore Group 3 Figure 14.14 (Volume 3) Cumulative ZTV: Onshore Group 4 Figure 14.15 (Volume 3) Cumulative ZTV: Onshore Group 5 Figure 14.16 (Volume 3) Cumulative ZTV: Onshore Group 6 Figure 14.17 (Volume 3) Cumulative ZTV: Onshore Group 7 Visualisations Figure 14.18 (Volume 3) VP2: Beach Road, Kirkton, St Cyrus Figure 14.19 (Volume 3) VP5:Dodd Hill Figure 14.20 (Volume 3) VP6:Braehead of Lunan Figure 14.21 (Volume 3) VP7:Arbroath Signal Tower Figure 14.22 (Volume 3) VP8:Carnoustie Figure 14.23 (Volume 3) VP9:Dundee Law Figure 14.24 (Volume 3) VP10:Tentsmuir Figure 14.25 (Volume 3) VP11:Strathkinness Figure 14.26 (Volume 3) VP12:St Andrews, East Scores Figure 14.27 (Volume 3) VP13:Fife Ness, Lochaber Rock Figure 14.28 (Volume 3) VP14:Anstruther Easter Figure 14.29 (Volume 3) VP15:Largo Law Figure 14.30 (Volume 3) VP16:Isle of May Figure 14.31 (Volume 3) VP17:North Berwick Law Figure 14.32 (Volume 3) VP18:Dunbar Figure 14.33 (Volume 3) VP19:Innerwick Figure 14.34 (Volume 3) VP20:Coldingham Moor Figure 14.35 (Volume 3) VP21:St Abb's Head Figure 14.36 (Volume 3) VP22:St Andrews, West Sands Road Figure 14.37 (Volume 3) VP23:Crail Figure 14.38 (Volume 3) VP24:Scottish Seabird Centre, North Berwick Figure 14.39 (Volume 3) VP25:Tantallon Castle Figure 14.40 (Volume 3) VP26:Broad Sands, North Berwick Figure 14.41 (Volume 3) VP27:A198, North Berwick Figure 14.42 (Volume 3) VP28:A199, East Linton Figure 14.43 (Volume 3) VP29:Hopetoun Monument Night visualisations Figure 14.44 (Volume 3) N1:Kings Road, Arbroath Figure 14.45 (Volume 3) N2:B961, Carmyllie Figure 14.46 (Volume 3) N3:East Haven Figure 14.47 (Volume 3) N4:St Andrews, East Scores Figure 14.48 (Volume 3) N5:Crail Figure 14.49 (Volume 3) N6:Scottish Seabird Centre, North Berwick Figure 14.50 (Volume 3) N7:Dunbar Figure 14.51 (Volume 3) N8:A199, East Linton Additional wirelines Figure 14.52 (Volume 3) A1:West Steel Figure 14.53 (Volume 3) A2:Traprain Law Figure 14.54 (Volume 3) A3:B6370 north of Garvald Figure 14.55 (Volume 3) A4:B6355 west of B6368 Figure 14.56 (Volume 3) A5:Ewieside Hill Figure 14.57 (Volume 3) A6:Fast Castle Wirelines accompanying Annex 1 Figure A1.1 (Volume 3) Arbroath Signal Tower Figure A1.2 (Volume 3) St Andrews, East Scores Figure A1.3 (Volume 3) Fife Ness Figure A1.4 (Volume 3) North Berwick Law Figure A1.5 (Volume 3) St Abb’s Head Figure A1.6 (Volume 3) Arbroath Signal Tower Figure A1.7 (Volume 3) St Andrews, East Scores Figure A1.8 (Volume 3) Fife Ness Figure A1.9 (Volume 3) North Berwick Law Figure A1.10 (Volume 3) St Abb’s Head Figures accompanying Annex 2 Figure 1 Seascape Character Units [BLANK PAGE] 1 Introduction Purpose of this Report 1.1 Neart na Gaoithe Offshore Wind Limited (NnGOWL) is developing a proposal for the Neart na Gaoithe Offshore Wind Farm and associated infrastructure in the outer Firth of Forth (‘the Project’). LUC has been appointed to undertake seascape, landscape and visual impact assessment (SLVIA) of the offshore components of the Project. Onshore components of the project were the subject of a separate assessment, and have received planning permission. 1.2 This SLVIA report forms a technical appendix to the EIA Report, and is summarised in Chapter 14: Seascape Landscape and Visual Impact of the EIA Report. It has been undertaken by Chartered Landscape Architects at LUC. 1.3 LUC prepared an SLVIA for the Originally Consented Project that was included in the 2012 Neart na Gaoithe Environmental Statement (‘the Original ES’), as well as SLVIA information included in the 2013 Addendum and S36 Variation. This SLVIA has been updated from that completed in 2012/13 to reflect recent published guidance, the current baseline situation, and design changes. The Project 1.4 The Project, described fully in Chapter 4: Project Description of the EIA Report, comprises the Offshore Wind Farm and associated Offshore Transmission Works (OfTW), located within the outer Firth of Forth. The site boundary defines a Wind Farm Area of approximately 105 square kilometres (km2). At its closest point to shore, the Wind Farm Area is approximately 15.5 kilometres (km) east of Fife Ness. To the northwest, the Angus coast is 30 km from the site boundary, and to the southwest, the East Lothian coast is around 27 km from the site boundary. Offshore Wind Farm 1.5 The Offshore Wind Farm has an indicative maximum capacity of 450 MW. The turbine specification and layout has not yet been determined, and a design envelope has been determined to identify the range of possible parameters. Based on the maximum parameters in the design envelope, the SLVIA is based on consideration of a layout comprising 54 turbines that are 208 metres (m) to tip height above lowest astronomical tide (LAT), with a rotor diameter of 167 m and a hub height of 124.5 m above LAT.1 The turbines will be painted a pale grey colour (RAL 7035) 1.6 The Offshore Wind Farm can be in situ for up to 50 years.