Camilty Wind Farm - Partnerships for Renewables

Camilty Wind Farm
• The Scottish Government Scottish Planning Policy SPP. (February 2010);
• Sustainable Development Commission, Wind Power in the UK – A guide to the key
issues surrounding onshore wind power development in the UK (2005).
9.2.10 The principal objectives of the assessment are:
• To describe, classify and evaluate the existing landscape and visual resources /
receptors likely to be affected by the proposed construction, operation and
decommissioning phases of the project; and
• To assess the significance of the effects of the proposals on the landscape resource
visual receptors, taking into account the measures proposed to mitigate any effects
identified.
Positive and Negative Effects
9.2.11 Wind energy development, wherever it occurs, is usually visible, i.e. wind farms require an
exposed position, generally an upland location or, alternatively, a large area of generally level
and open landscape. It also tends to have a characterising effect upon the landscape,
depending upon the scale of the proposal and the character of the environment into which it
is placed. The proposed wind farm would have the following general attributes typical of most
wind farms: engineered, large scale, simple in form, smooth texture, monochrome/muted
colour and strong vertical form. Responses by people to wind farms can vary from ‘beautiful’
to ‘offensive’, with respondents perceiving wind turbines as potentially rhythmic, unusual,
safe, interesting, invigorating, majestic and spiritual on the one hand and degrading, jarring,
overbearing, industrial, clashing and ugly on the other. Wind energy development thus gives
rise to a spectrum of responses from individuals and organisations who perceive its effects
ranging from strongly adverse to strongly positive.
9.2.12 The likely significant effects should be described covering type (i.e. direct, indirect or
cumulative), temporal nature (short, medium and long term, permanent or temporary), and
valency (positive and negative or adverse). Accordingly, judgements as to valency of the
effect should be given and justified in an explicit and transparent manner since they are
inevitably subjective.
9.2.13 The heading ‘valency’, originally used in the Durham County Council Impact Assessment
Matrices (unpublished, 1996) but now much more widely recognised, is an important one and
provides scope to recognise that change of whatever type and scale within a landscape can
be viewed positively or negatively by different individuals. For the purposes of this
assessment, effects have been defined based on the scenario of an individual who may
perceive the wind farm as a negative addition to the landscape or view. Effects are therefore
defined as adverse throughout the assessment; but may in fact be seen as positive by large
numbers of viewers. An individual who perceives wind farms as a positive addition to the
landscape or view may consider the same effects to be beneficial or neutral in nature. Further
definition of valency and public attitudes to wind energy development can be found at
Appendix 9.1.
Baseline Information (Baseline and Cumulative Schemes)
9.2.14 The baseline for EIA purposes is taken as being the existing situation at submission of the
application ( 2013), including operational wind farms and those under construction. The
site is located within an area of commercial forestry managed by FCS. The ongoing
March 2013 9-3 ES Chapter 9
Landscape and Visual
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