Planning for Renewable Energy in Worcestershire Research Paper

6. Renewable Energy and the Environment ofWorcestershire6.1 Renewable energy schemes canhave a visual and/or environmentalimpact on their surroundings and onWorcestershire's built and naturallandscape and biodiversity. Smallermethods of micro-generation, such asroof-mounted solar hot water panels, canrepresent unobtrusive additions to thestreetscape; however, the impact of a2MW wind turbine is likely to have agreater effect, being visible from aconsiderable distance. The potentiallydamaging impacts resulting fromtechnologies can also differ. Migratorypatterns of birds, for example, may needto be considered in the siting andoperation of a large wind turbine or windfarm, whereas the installation of solarpanels on the roof of a house may requirea survey to investigate whether a bathabitat would be at risk, as bats are aprotected species.6.2 Whilst it is generally recognisedthat large-scale projects can havesignificant effects on their surroundings, itis also crucial to consider the impact ofsmaller-scale installations. This applies tomost of the technologies listed inAppendix A, and includes the need toassess the potential cumulative effect of anumber of smaller systems.14In the case of wind turbines, the SustainableDevelopment Commission suggest, in 'Wind Power in theUK' (2005) that "There is a strong case for viewing winddevelopments as temporary structures, pendinglonger-term approval on landscape grounds. As fulldecommissioning is usually possible, lasting objectionscould potentially be remedied on a case-by-case basis bythe eventual removal of the turbines at the end of theirworking lives".6.3 Cumulative impact can arise whena number of renewable energydevelopments (or the constituent parts ofa single development) combine toheighten the effect of the development(s)on an area. An area judged as suitable foraccommodating a renewable energydevelopment may not necessarily be ableto accommodate further development of asimilar type. Some renewables, such aslarge-scale wind turbines, may requireextensive ancillary structures such ascabling, access roads, maintenancebuildings and sub-stations. In combinationthese developments could result in a fargreater impact on the landscape than asolitary turbine, and this should beconsidered for any such application.Similarly, whilst the growing of biofuels orbiomass on a small scale may beaccommodated without serious change tothe landscape, the wholesale diversion offields to the growing of oilseed rape, forexample, could have dramatic impacts notonly on the landscape, but also onbiodiversity and amenity concerns. Thereis the potential for these impacts to bepositive as well as negative.6.4 It may be possible to limit theharmful effects on landscape, biodiversityor heritage by ensuring reversibility inrenewables proposals. This would allowthe site to be returned to its previous (orimproved) state after the end of its designlife or a specified period of time. This is apractice commonly encountered in theconditions of quarrying developments,and could theoretically be extended torenewable energy installations, to ensurea site is fully remediated. 146. RENEWABLE ENERGY & THE ENVIRONMENT ● Planning for Renewable Energy in WorcestershireTechnical Research Paper 15