Forthbank Wind Energy Development - Partnerships for Renewables

Forthbank Wind Energy Development
turbine is comparable to, if not greater than, the distance between the reference monitoring
location and the nearest turbine.
Table 8.3 Assessment Properties in the Vicinity of the Proposed Wind Energy
Development
Property
Easting Northing Approximate Distance Closest
Survey Location
(Table 8.2)
(* denotes involved)
to Closest Turbine (m) Turbine (ID)
Park Farm 290485 690979 811 3 2
Dunmore Home Farm 288655 690090 1046 2 1
13 Riverside View 288885 691912 435 1 3
Inch of Ferryton 290427 689987 860 4 2
Craigrie 290477 691592 1109 3 2
Dunmore East 289177 689805 900 4 1
Dunmore Town 289378 689610 967 4 1
Bowhouse Gardens 288725 691933 484 1 3
South Alloa 287884 691843 1069 1 3
12 Riverside View 288874 691985 507 1 3
8.3.4 The background noise monitoring exercise was conducted over a period of just over two
weeks between 22 July and 9 August 2010. This is in excess of the ETSU-R-97 stated
minimum of 1 week. The equipment used for the survey comprised three Rion NL-32 logging
sound level meters. All meters were enclosed in environmental cases with battery power to
enable continuous logging at the required 10 minute averaging periods. Outdoor windshield
systems were used to reduce wind induced noise on the microphones and provide protection
from rain. These windshield systems were supplied by the sound level meter manufacturer
and maintain the required performance of the whole measurement system when fitted. The
environmental enclosures provided an installed microphone height of approximately 1.2m
above ground level.
8.3.5 The sound level meters were located on the proposed wind energy development side of the
property in question where possible, never closer than 3.5m from the façade of the property
and as far away as was practical from obvious atypical localised sources of noise such as
running water, trees or boiler flues. Details and photographs of the measurement locations
are presented in Appendix 8.2.
8.3.6 All measurement systems were calibrated on their deployment on 22 July 2010 and upon
collection of the equipment on 9 August 2010. No significant (>0.5 dB(A)) drifts in calibration
were found to have occurred on any of the systems. This equates to a total ETSU-R-97
analysis period of at least 18 days for each location.
8.3.7 All measurement systems were set to log the L A90,10min and L Aeq,10min noise levels continuously
over the deployment period. The internal clocks on the sound level meters were all
synchronized with Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) by the use of a Global Positioning System
(GPS) receiver. The clock on the met mast from which wind data was subsequently collected
for the analysis of the measured background noise as function of wind speed was also set to
GMT. Details of the equipment used, the calibration dates and calibrations are provided in
Appendix 8.2.
Current Conditions
8.3.8 The ETSU-R-97 method requires correlation of the noise data with wind speed data at a 10m
height which can either be derived from measured 10m wind speeds or by calculation from
November 2010 Chapter 8 Page 8
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