Camilty Wind Farm - Partnerships for Renewables

Camilty Wind Farm
Significance
of Effects
Landscape Resource
Visual Resource / Amenity
and/or would maintain quality, or where the
benefits of proposed mitigation would
balance adverse impacts.
proposed mitigation would maintain the
quality of the views.
9.2.66 EIA is a means of drawing together, in a systematic way, an assessment of a project’s likely
significant environmental effects. It is accepted from the outset that wind farm development
could potentially give rise to significant effects. However, not all landscape and visual effects
arising would be significant in EIA terms. The table below sets out in matrix form the main
correlations between magnitude and sensitivity for both landscape and visual effects and
forms a variation of the generic matrix at Table 2.2 of Chapter 2 of the ES to enable topicspecific
effects to be more accurately assessed.
Table 9.8 Establishing the Level of Effect
Sensitivity of Receptor
HIGH MEDIUM LOW NEGLIGIBLE
Magnitude of Change/Impact
LARGE Substantial Major or
Moderate
MEDIUM
SMALL
NEGLIGIBLE
Major or
Moderate
Moderate or
Slight
Slight or
Negligible
Moderate or
Slight
Slight or
Negligible
Moderate Slight Negligible
Slight Slight Negligible
Negligible Negligible Negligible
9.2.67 In the assessment of visual effects, for the purposes of the Landscape and Visual Impact
Assessment (LVIA), those effects indicated as being of ‘Substantial’ or ‘Major’, significance
(as derived through the application of the methodology set out above) may be regarded as
significant effects in EIA terms. An accumulation of individual ‘Moderate’ effects may also be
regarded as significant in terms of the EIA Regulations. Where the sensitivity or magnitude is
of the highest level i.e. High or Large respectively, the matrix offers the choice of two
potential significances of effect. The assessor is then required to use professional judgement
to define the level of significance in these most important scenarios.
9.2.68 With respect to the assessment of landscape effects, areas over which the proposed wind
farm is likely to give rise to new landscape types / character areas and/or where sub-types/
areas would be established, are most likely to be deemed significant in EIA terms. However,
significance can vary depending on individual circumstances and the baseline situation, for
example the presence of landscape designations and/or detractors. This is particularly the
case in assessing whether (or not) a proposed development would (a) give rise to a new
landscape character type in its own right, where the proposed development would be the
defining landscape characteristic and/or (b) give rise to a new landscape sub-type in which
the proposed development would be a major contributory element in defining character. In
the first case, the resulting effect would normally be significant. In the second case, the
assessor has used professional judgement to determine if the effect is significant or not.
March 2013 9-15 ES Chapter 9
Landscape and Visual
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