Practical experiences of Polish regional authority responsible for conducting the EIA for offshore wind farms, also in a transboundary context

Transcription

1 Practical experiences of Polish regional authority responsible for conducting the EIA for offshore wind farms, also in a transboundary context Hanna Dzikowska Regional Director for Environmental Protection in Gdansk Geneva

2 Factors influencing the process of EIA 1. Long-term planning and realisation of the project 2. Costs and energy market conditions 3. The legal system 4. The local conditions on sea and land 5. Predicted collisions with the existing infrastructure 6. Predicted collisions with other users of the sea 7. Predicted cumulative impact

3 Legal System - Complicated 1. In the near future, with limited data, investors should receive important permissions from varied administrative organs decisions about localisation decisions about environmental conditions agreement on connections to the energy net 2. Time factors and lack of data at the stage of gaining permissions there is a lack of full information about the proposed site of the wind farm investors and administrators have difficulty to take decisions

4 The law and possibilities of realisation 1. On the land: the subject of the project = wind farm + connection to the energy net 2. At sea: the subject of the project = wind farm the subject of the project = connection to the energy net Paying attention to the lack of knowledge at the scoping stage about potential places for energy connections from the sea to the land-based energy net Paying attention to the fact that starting the testing process will take years and be costly, without this it is not possible to go to the next stage of the EIA procedure

5 Existing knowledge about the environment in the region of the planned investment 1. At sea lack of data needs expensive research 2. On the land there is data needs analysis or additional research

6 Elements of the EIA procedure 1. Decision on the scope of the report, issued by Regional Directorate for Environmental Protection (RDEP) scope and methods of the environmental research (administration + investor) completion of the environmental research (investor) verification of the state of the environment (investor) technical concept of the project (investor)

7 Elements of the EIA procedure 2. EIA Report most important for wind farms description of different variants of the project assessment of impact on the environment of these variants assessment of the cumulative impact of both planned and extant projects limiting environmental conditions for the project Source: SMDI

8 EIA PROCEDURE inter alia Scale and type of impacts Environmental conditions of the investment Public participation

9 Decision about environmental conditions Limiting environmental conditions for the project At this stage of knowledge, based on research on the natural environment and sea floor, it is possible to describe predicted or excluded technologies For example, types of foundation, characteristics of rotors, height of tower etc Source: SMDI

10 Current state of the EIA procedure for Polish wind farms on the Baltic (for example the investment Baltic Middle III from the Polenergia comp) RDEP in Gdansk described the scope of the report and this included the necessary research on the environment The decision was issued on

11 Scope of the research on the environment required by RDEP Ichthyofauna and fishing Sedimentation and mineral resources Benthos Hydrochemistry and hydrology Sea-floor and archaeology Sea birds, migrating birds, mammals, bats Shipping lanes, under-sea infrastructure (10 ships, 1300 tests, 130 days at sea) Source: SMDI

12 Exemplary analysis of varying windmills in the area of one farm Limiting factors 1. Type of foundation (depending on the sea-floor sandy or rocky) 2. Biological limits (eg feeding area for birds) Different types of sea floor Source: SMDI

13 Impact assessment on Nature 2000 Legal base of assessment: Article 6 (3) and (4) of the Habitats Directive 92/43/EEC Article 66 of the Environmental Impact Assessment Act Article 33 and 34 of the Nature Conservation Act Source: European Comission

14 Potential locations for offshore wind farms (in the Polish Exclusive Economic Zone, EEZ ) Source: Ministry of Infrastructure and Development

15 Transboundary procedures RDEP in Gdansk is running 12 EIA procedures for offshore wind farms, 2 of them with transboundary procedures (because of the localisation of wind farms near the Southern Middle Bank on the border between the Polish and Swedish economic zone) Sweden and Finland decided to take part as affected parties The other farms are located near the Polish coast, and there is no need for the transboundary procedure

16 Proposed location for Baltic Middle III, Baltic North and Baltica-1 Baltic North Baltica-1 Baltic Middle III

17 Source: SMDI Proposed connections to the energy net on the land

18 Methodology of habitat and species assessment Assessment of the plans and projects which have a significant impact on Nature 2000 according to the methodology guidelines Art. 6 (3) and (4) of the Habitats Directive 92/43/EEC Wind energy developments and Nature 2000, EC 2010 Domestic guidelines in this field Source: European Comission

19 Chosen elements of the scoping 1. Description of the project 2. Location of the project in relation to the Nature 2000 areas 3. Describing the zone of the potential impacts of the project 4. Description of the Nature 2000 areas nearby which are in the zone of potential impact of the project 5. Description of potential impacts of the project on Nature 2000 areas 6. Environmental results of non-realisation of the project 7. Assessment of probabilities of occurring impacts on the Nature 2000 areas

20 Conclusion Building wind farms at sea is a long and complicated process; however, considering the following: minor impact upon the landscape, limited impact upon Nature, very effective Energy production, it seems that renewable energy from the offshore wind farms is a better choice than land-based farms.

21 Thank you Middelgrunden offshore wind farm (40 MW) observed in Øresund Photo by Kim Hansen - Wikimedia Commons