Galloper Wind Farm Project - National Infrastructure Planning

2890_mitigation
11
August 2011
Galloper Wind Farm Substation
3.0 Principles of Mitigation
In designing the concept substation and landscape proposals the following principles
have been followed.
a) The principal objective is to create a substation enclosed within a broadleaved
wood comprising an extension to the existing Sizewell Wents wood. This
would be appropriate to local landscape character and also help to screen the
substation infrastructure from the surrounding landscape and visual
receptors, and provide a backdrop to development.
b) Create an organic, naturalistic outside edge to new planting associated with
Sizewell Wents wood with native trees, shrubs and open grassland.
c) Replace woodland lost due to the creation of the substation and addition of
further woodland.
d) Lower the substation platform level so that above ground infrastructure is
lowered and therefore less visible.
e) Create a profiled landform around the north, west and south sides of the
substation, where it adjoins open fields, using material generated from
excavation to lower the substation, to provide instant screening and raise the
ground level on which woodland would be planted. Outside facing slopes to
be 1:10 to integrate with existing ground profiles.
f) Minimise the heights of structures to reduce their visibility from the
surrounding landscape. It has been possible to identify maximum equipment
heights within different areas of the substation as shown on drawing
GWF_583_R1 in Appendix 2. Buildings and equipment will not be a uniform
height throughout each area but pieces of equipment/buildings may be up to
the heights shown. Much of the equipment will be lower than these heights.
The tallest building will be in the Galloper compound which will be up to
14m above ground level (up to 23mAOD).
It will be necessary to include a number of lightning rods within the
development on buildings and other structures and these will have a height of
up to 3m above these elements and a diameter of up to 50mm. They could,
therefore, project up to 3m above the maximum equipment heights shown on
drawing GWF_583_R1. Due to their small diameter, they will only be visible
from close proximity.
g) Group buildings and taller structures close to the existing GGOWF substation
so that they form a focused cluster (i.e. to the east of the site).
h) Locate taller buildings close to or within the existing Sizewell Wents wood to
provide screening in the short, medium and long term (i.e. to the east of the
site).