Chipley Abbey Development Project

We’ve wrapped up our initial noise assessment, carefully following strict guidelines to look out for you and your neighbours near the proposed turbine site. But with unusual weather conditions, known as Dunkelflaute, we’re running the assessment again to make sure our findings reflect typical conditions.

Noise Receptors Map

We are carrying out a comprehensive Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment (LVIA). This essential assessment ensures that the project fits smoothly into the local landscape, minimising any visual impact on the surrounding area.

We’re combining detailed research with real-world visits to find key spots where the turbine might be seen. Our goal is to make sure the turbine blends seamlessly into the surroundings. We've already completed an initial Zone of Theoretical Visibility (ZTV) study to predict where the turbine could be visible, but don’t worry – natural features like hills and trees will help reduce visibility in many places.

To give everyone a clear idea of how it will look, we’ve put together wireframe models and photomontages that show what the turbine will look like from key viewpoints before it’s even built.

As part of the process, we’ll be submitting a full LVIA with all the details, including mitigation plans to keep the visual impact to a minimum. We’ll share our findings with local stakeholders, and the public will have the opportunity to provide feedback during the consultation phase.

Feel free to check out our downloadable files for the Zone of Theoretical Visibility (ZTV), LVIA maps, and photomontages!

LVIA Mapping & Zone of Theoretical Visibility

Photomontages 1

Photomontages 2

We will be conducting a Preliminary Ecological Assessment (PEA). This will cover a habitat survey and desk study, giving us some initial recommendations for further surveys and monitoring.

Initial results show the site poses a low risk for ecological impacts, which is great news! But we’re not stopping there. We’ve got further assessments lined up to closely monitor birds, bats, and local habitats, ensuring everything stays in tip-top shape.

We’ll also be carrying out additional bird and bat surveys to make sure everything's in tip-top shape. And the best part? We're committed to ensuring at least a 10% biodiversity net gain for the project!

We will carry out the necessary surveys for Radar and Telecommunications. We’ll share the scope of the study and its findings here.

We will be prepping a Heritage Impact Assessment to look at the significance of historic buildings, complexes, areas, monuments, or archaeological sites (heritage assets). This assessment will check out how the proposed wind turbine might affect these heritage assets and their surroundings. We'll be sharing the findings of the Heritage Impact Assessment with you right here soon!

We have conducted a Shadow Flicker Assessment to check out the flickering effect caused by wind turbine blades casting shadows over neighboring properties through windows and other openings. The results show no receptors impacted by shadow flicker or need to mitigate. Please see the full shadow flicker report below.

Shadow Flicker Report

We're currently mapping out the best access point and tracks for the site and planning the routes for vehicles coming from further away.

When it’s time to bring in the main turbine components (tower sections, blades, hub, nacelle, and generator), they’ll arrive on eight specially-loaded vehicles. Given their size and speed (slow!), these deliveries are scheduled outside of peak traffic hours and carefully escorted to protect roads, bridges, and trees along the way. Full details will be included in our planning application, but the good news is that getting the turbine on-site without negatively impacting the road network looks totally possible!

The site is located in Flood Zone 1, which means it’s at low risk of flooding from rivers or the sea. If the plot is larger than 1 hectare, we’ll need to carry out a Flood Risk Assessment and Drainage Strategy as part of the planning application – and that’s exactly what we’ll be doing.

It’s also worth mentioning that most of the hard surfaces on the site will be naturally porous (think crushed stone or gravel), apart from the turbine base and the transformer area, which will have a more solid surface. This approach helps manage water flow.