More information demanded over windfarm plans

The body that will assess controversial plans for a windfarm off the Fylde coast has demanded more details about the impact the development could have on residents and the environment.

The Planning Inspectorate will ultimately recommend to the government whether or not to approve the installation of the transmission infrastructure required for the ‘Morgan and Morecambe’ offshore wind projects.

It has now given the firms behind the scheme just over a month to respond to concerns raised by several organisations and provide more information ahead of a formal examination of the proposals.

The plans revolve around the construction of two separate windfarms in the Irish Sea, which would require major on-shore underground cabling operations across the Fylde – including the creation of two substations, south of Kirkham and west of Newton-with-Scales – and onwards, beneath the River Ribble, to Penwortham, where the electricity generated by the turbines would be fed into the national grid.

The Planning Inspectorate has written to the Morgan and Morecambe team to request responses to several representations it has received about the projects.

Amongst them are queries about the construction timetable and the possibility there could be a four-year gap between the completion of the first scheme and the start of work on the second.

In its representation, Fylde Council expressed concern – amongst many other issues – about the potential for “multiple repeat phases of construction”; specifically, the implications for noise, air quality, agricultural land, traffic and human health.

The authority said the environmental statement accompanying the plans was largely based on “one concurrent phase of development” which did not consider the effect of various impacts being experienced over “ a much greater period of time”.  The issue was also highlighted by Natural England and the Marine Management Organisation.

The Inspectorate’s lead member for the windfarms examination, David Cliff, has asked for “further explanation of and justification for” the reliance on the all-in-one development scenario – and assessments of the potential cumulative impact from “sequential” developments, up to four years apart.

Natural England also claimed a number of assessments undertaken for the application were either “not sufficiently robust” – or that further information or surveys were required.   The possible effects on the Ribble and Alt Estuaries Special Protection Area and the Fylde Marine Conservation Zone were two of the issues highlighted by the government’s advisory body on the environment.

Mr. Cliff said the details sought by Natural England – and also the Marine Management Organisation – should be provided or “robust information be submitted in its place” to inform the Inspectorate’s consideration of environmental and habitat matters.

Meanwhile, responses have also been ordered to address safety concerns raised by Blackpool Airport and BAE Systems regarding the effects of the windfarm works on their operations – in BAE’s case, at Warton Aerodrome – including the potential increased risk of bird strikes.

Morgan and Morecambe have been given a deadline of 21st March to respond to the requests made in the Planning Inspectorate letter, dated 14th February.    If they are unable to do so, they should instead set out “the earliest reasonable timeframe for producing the information”.

The examination period, when it begins, could last up to six months.   No date has yet been set for that part of the process, but Mr. Cliff said the representations received pointed to “numerous unresolved issues” – and so encouraged “continued dialogue between the applicants and interested parties”.

“This would help to progress matters of disagreement, to allow for the necessary information to be provided for an effective examination and to allow for the most efficient use of [the] statutory examination period,” he wrote.

Morgan and Morecambe say the two windfarms are expected to make “a key contribution” to the UK’s target of generating 50GW of power from offshore wind by 2030 – and have the potential to produce enough electricity to power the equivalent of around two million homes.