Allt Duine Wind Farm Issue 2 March 2011. - RWE

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2 Allt Duine Newsletter | Issue 02 | February 2011 Keeping you informed RWE npower renewables outlined its commitment to keeping local people informed about the Allt Duine Wind Farm proposal. Full details of the public consultation undertaken, including a summary of the responses to our questionnaires from the mailout and public exhibitions held in September 2010 are detailed in the Public Consultation Report included with the application. Based on some of the comments received, it was apparent that some respondents thought that the proposal would be more visible in the Spey Valley. The proposed turbines would be sited to the north of the Cairngorms National Park (CNP) boundary, in the catchment of the River Dulnain. There would be very limited visibility of the proposed turbines from with the Spey Valley or along the A9. Facts and figures Location: North of Kincraig in Badenoch and Strathspey No. of turbines: 31 with an anticipated capacity of 2-3MW Tip height: up to 125m, except at specific turbines where tip height is restricted to 110m at three locations Maximum anticipated capacity: 93MW Homes supplied 1 : 43,000 1 The site statistics of the proposed wind farm have changed since the first Allt Duine Wind Farm newsletter was issued in August 2010 and the public exhibitions were held in September 2010. As a direct result of feedback from environmental studies, the local community and statutory consultees we have: – reduced the number of turbines from 34 to 31 turbines – restricted the height to blade tip to 110m at three locations, to limit the visual impact and in some cases avoid visibility from viewpoints within the Strathspey area. Site layout Location map Key
Photomontage of proposed Allt Duine Wind Farm from the Argyll Stone* How we arrived at the final layout We have considered the views of statutory and community stakeholders through consultation and used the studies undertaken as part of the Environmental Impact Assessment to inform the final layout design. The wind farm layout has been designed so that no turbines are located: – within 2.5km of an active or previously occupied golden eagle nest – within 50m of a water course – on habitat used by protected species or classified as highest sensitivity to change – on a slope greater than 15 degrees, or in areas where the local topography limits wind resource – on areas of deep peat or where peat is heavily degraded. Considerable effort has been given to produce a turbine layout which achieves the most satisfactory relationship with the landform of the site whilst respecting other environmental, technical and economic considerations. Particular attention was given to achieving a ‘balanced’ layout when viewed from key viewpoints and summits within the Cairngorm National Park (CNP), and to minimising visibility of the turbines from within the Spey Valley. The routes of access tracks have been designed to limit the overall length of new track required (through efficient design and use of existing tracks where possible), follow the natural contours of the land form and use the natural landform to ‘shield’ the track where possible. All other infrastructure has been sited in an effort to ensure the wind farm layout would be practical and effective through the construction and operation phases, but to ensure potential environmental impacts would be avoided or reduced. Allt Duine Newsletter | Issue 02 | February 2011 3 Key milestones 1: Submission of Section 36 Application February 2011 2: Public Consultation Period February – April 2011 3: Local authority consultation period February – July 2011 4: Scottish Ministers Decision (if no further information or public inquiry required) November 2011 5: Construction period (if approved) 2013 – 2015 6: Wind Farm operational 2015 onwards Future dates are subject to change
Page 1: Photomontage of proposed Allt Duine

Allt Duine Wind Farm Issue 2 March 2011. - RWE

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