Camilty Wind Farm - Partnerships for Renewables

Camilty Wind Farm
Consultee Contact Response Section of
chapter where
point(s)
addressed
a significant effect on qualifying interests, an
appropriate assessment will be required.
15 January
2013 e-mail
response
from Megan
Jones
Response to request for advice on Cumulative
Impact Assessment (CIA) scope;
With regard to the two main species of interest at
Camilty (pink-footed goose and goshawk) SNH
advised that different approaches were adopted for
each species due to their different behaviours and
habitat requirements. Regarding pink-footed geese
the CIA should address potential impacts on the
Westwater SPA population, while impacts on
goshawk should be investigated at the relevant
Natural Heritage Zone (NHZ) level. Weblinks were
provided to relevant guidance and advice on
undertaking these assessments.
The cumulative
effects of the
proposed Camilty
wind farm incombination
with
other wind farm
developments is
presented in the
Cumulative
Impact
Assessment
Section (12.8)
Royal
Society for
the
Protection
of Birds
(RSPB)
Scotland
24 August
2012 email
from Mike
Fraser
(Lothian and
Borders
Conservation
Officer)
Satisfied with the scope of the ornithological
surveys.
Reference should be made to the on-going Southeast
Scotland Bird Atlas project (http://www.thesoc.org.uk/se-atlas/)
for recent information on the
distribution and status of species in the region.
Concern was raised about Westwater Reservoir
SPA, which is approximately 7 km south-east of
Camilty and which supports a major roost of pinkfooted
geese, with maximum counts of 64,000
recorded in 2005-6, representing 21% of the
national (UK) population.
While Camilty may not lie on a recognised major
flight path between feeding grounds and Westwater,
it will be important to determine the direction and
height of movement of birds leaving and returning to
the roost under a variety of local cropping regimes
and weather conditions. This will allow an
assessment of any likely impact of the proposed
wind farm on the SPA.
Pink-footed geese may also roost at Cobbinshaw
Reservoir, just west of Camilty, although numbers
there have declined since peaking at more than
5,000 in the early 1980s. Nevertheless, fieldwork
will also be required to assess fully the birds’ current
level of use of the reservoir and any potential impact
on them of the proposed development.
The ecological effects of the proposed development
with existing, approved and planned windfarms in
the area need to be addressed in terms of
cumulative collision risk and displacement of birds.
Consideration of
the impacts on
pink-footed geese
in relation to
Westwater SPA is
presented in the
Designated Sites
(12.3.38 –
12.3.41.) and
Impact
Assessment
(12.7)Sections.
Details of roost
counts at
Cobbinshaw
Reservoir are
provided in
Baseline
Conditions (see
12.3.26).
West
Lothian
Council
7 September
2012 Letter
from Esme
Clelland
(Planning
Officer)
Stated that the council was satisfied with the
methodology and assumptions made.
The EIA must have sufficient information to assess
whether the proposal is likely to have a significant
affect on the qualifying interests of any Natura 2000
sites.
Consideration of
European
designated sites is
given throughout
this Chapter as
detailed above.
March 2013 12-5 ES Chapter 12
Ornithology
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