Studies show that the wind conditions in Pilsupe are excellent. Possible impact to nature conservation or national-defence-related restrictions will
deeply be investigated and studied. The lack of residential housing means that the wind farm can be built with minimal disturbance.
There is a good network of forest roads already in place.
Studies show that the wind conditions in Kurzeme are excellent.
Possible impact to nature conservation or national-defence-related restrictions will deeply be investigated and studied.
The lack of residential housing means that the wind farm can be built with minimal disturbance.
There is a good network of forest roads already in place.
The construction of the wind farm will be preceded by a comprehensive environmental impact assessment (EIA), where impacts on both people and nature are considered. In parallel with the impact assessment, a land use plan will be drawn up.
During the EIA and the land use plan process the main impacts will be assessed were:
In the assessment of environmental effects, priority was given to those assessed as significant and perceived effects. The EIA programme included a Natura needs assessment in accordance with environmental legislation.
In the EIA review phase will be made the following additional studies to support the existing material in the evaluation work:
Although the noise generated by modern wind turbines is modest (compared to, for example, heavy industry or the timber industry), the rumble caused by the movement of the blades in the vicinity of a wind farm cannot be prevented entirely. Nevertheless, operating noise above normative levels from the most powerful wind turbines does not extend further than 700 metres from the turbine even under the most conservative assumptions. In any case, the developers aim to devise a wind farm that will not disturb the residents in the vicinity.
During the wind turbine design process, a noise map is drawn up, showing the estimated propagation of noise. Such noise maps are based on the assumption that all wind turbines are operating in the mode which produces the maximum amount of noise and that the noise propagates simultaneously in all directions. In real life, however, this is never the case, because noise can only travel in one direction downwind. In noise modelling, the absorption or reflection of sound on the ground is also taken into account – for example, forests are excellent noise barriers and absorb various sounds relatively well. In addition, some of the noise generated by wind turbines is attenuated by normal background noise, such as the movement of vehicles or the rustling of the wind. In conclusion, noise maps take many precautions into account, as a result of which the actual noise level is always lower than in the models.
Infrasound is sound whose pressure changes at a frequency of less than 20 Hz, i.e. below the lower hearing threshold of the average person. The infrasound generated by wind turbines always falls below the human hearing and perception threshold. Moreover, various studies show that the infrasound generated by wind turbines is of the same order of magnitude as infrasound generated by natural phenomena. At a distance of about 300–500 metres from a wind turbine, the risk to human health from infrasound is non-existent.
In order for a wind turbine to remain stable and durable, the foundation of the turbine must be completely vibration-free. Therefore, we can safely say that operating wind turbines do not cause ground vibration.
On sunny days, rotating wind turbine blades cast moving shadows. For such shadow flicker to occur, the wind turbine must be aligned with the observer as well as the sun (the line of the sun’s rays). As such, the time of occurrence of these moving shadows is easily predictable and modellable, allowing it to be taken into account when deciding the positioning of the wind turbines. This makes it possible to completely prevent disturbances due to the shadow flicker effect.
Wind turbines do not emit any radiation and therefore involve no radiation-related risks.
For the construction of a wind farm, trees need to be removed from the area of the foundation of the wind turbine and the construction site, which means an area of approximately 1 ha per wind turbine. At the same time, it is essential to preserve the green infrastructure and the habitats of animals and birds. There are no known wind farm development projects where animals and birds have not returned to the area after the end of the construction operations.
The risk of birds flying into the wind turbine or being struck by its blades is seen as one of the main and more distinctive impacts of wind turbines on the natural environment. However, it is possible to take several measures to minimise or prevent this risk. Painting of turbine blades and the installation of special lighting for non-daylight hours has been successfully employed to make turbine blades more visible to birds. In addition, the rotational speed of modern wind turbines is relatively low, which also significantly reduces the risk of collisions.
The impact of wind turbines on animals depends on a number of factors, including the location of the wind turbines as well as the particular species of animal and that species’ sensitivity to external influences. Estonian biologists have reported, for example, that various mammals have adapted surprisingly well to wind farms on the west coast of Estonia. Several studies also show that game animals that are more wary of humans become used to wind turbines fairly quickly after construction even in forested areas. Whether and how wind turbines will affect biodiversity and animals, however, is identified during strategic environmental impact assessment. In the impact assessment and wind farm planning process, the objective is to ensure that the construction of the wind farm does not have a significant impact on animals. If this cannot be ensured by mitigation measures, the construction of the wind farm in the area will be abandoned.
Based on previous experience, it does not appear that the construction and operation of wind farms has a negative impact on groundwater or dug wells, or on surface water. In order for this to remain the case, the potential impacts are analysed in more detail during the environmental impact assessment and, if necessary, engineering solutions are deployed to prevent any risks.