scholarly journals Enabling Renewable Energy While Protecting Wildlife: An Ecological Risk-Based Approach to Wind Energy Development Using Ecosystem-Based Management Values

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (22) ◽  
pp. 9352
Author(s):  
Andrea E. Copping ◽  
Alicia M. Gorton ◽  
Roel May ◽  
Finlay Bennet ◽  
Elise DeGeorge ◽  
...  

Acceptance of wind energy development is challenged by stakeholders’ concerns about potential effects on the environment, specifically on wildlife, such as birds, bats, and (for offshore wind) marine animals, and the habitats that support them. Communities near wind energy developments are also concerned with social and economic impacts, as well as impacts on aesthetics, historical sites, and recreation and tourism. Lack of a systematic, widely accepted, and balanced approach for measuring the potential damage to wildlife, habitats, and communities continues to leave wind developers, regulators, and other stakeholders in an uncertain position. This paper explores ecological risk-based management (RBM) in wind energy development for land-based and offshore wind installations. This paper provides a framework for the adaptation of ecosystem-based management to wind energy development and examines that framework through a series of case studies and best management practices for applying risk-based principles to wind energy. Ten case studies indicate that wind farm monitoring is often driven by regulatory requirements that may not be underpinned by scientific questions. While each case applies principles of adaptive management, there is room for improvement in applying scientific principles to the data collection and analysis. Challenges and constraints for wind farm development to meet RBM framework criteria include collecting sufficient baseline and monitoring data year-round, engaging stakeholder facilitators, and bringing together large and diverse scientific teams. The RBM framework approach may provide insights for improved siting and consenting/permitting processes for regulators and their advisors, particularly in those nations where wind energy is still in the early development stages on land or at sea.

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 924 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaoxia Gao ◽  
Lu Xia ◽  
Lin Lu ◽  
Yonghua Li

The wind energy utilization in Hong Kong is limited, although its potential has proven to be significant. The lack of effective policy for wind energy development is the main constraint. In this paper, the wind power potential in Hong Kong is analyzed, and the wind power potential assessment is conducted based on one-year field measured wind data using Light Detection & Ranging (LiDAR) technology in a proposed offshore wind farm. Results show that the offshore wind power potential in Hong Kong was 14,449 GWh which occupied 32.20% of electricity consumption in 2017. In addition, the electricity market and power structure in Hong Kong are also reviewed with the existing policies related to renewable energy development. Conclusions can be made that the renewable energy target in Hong Kong is out of date and until now there have been no specific effective policies on wind energy. In order to urge Hong Kong, catch up with other countries/regions on wind energy development, the histories and evolution of wind energy policies in other countries, especially in Denmark, are reviewed and discussed. Suggestions are provided in the aspects of economics, public attitude, and political factors which can stimulate wind power development in Hong Kong.


Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 693
Author(s):  
Anna Dóra Sæþórsdóttir ◽  
Margrét Wendt ◽  
Edita Tverijonaite

The interest in harnessing wind energy keeps increasing globally. Iceland is considering building its first wind farms, but its landscape and nature are not only a resource for renewable energy production; they are also the main attraction for tourists. As wind turbines affect how the landscape is perceived and experienced, it is foreseeable that the construction of wind farms in Iceland will create land use conflicts between the energy sector and the tourism industry. This study sheds light on the impacts of wind farms on nature-based tourism as perceived by the tourism industry. Based on 47 semi-structured interviews with tourism service providers, it revealed that the impacts were perceived as mostly negative, since wind farms decrease the quality of the natural landscape. Furthermore, the study identified that the tourism industry considered the following as key factors for selecting suitable wind farm sites: the visibility of wind turbines, the number of tourists and tourist attractions in the area, the area’s degree of naturalness and the local need for energy. The research highlights the importance of analysing the various stakeholders’ opinions with the aim of mitigating land use conflicts and socioeconomic issues related to wind energy development.


2021 ◽  
pp. 014459872199226
Author(s):  
Yu-chi Tian ◽  
Lei kou ◽  
Yun-dong Han ◽  
Xiaodong Yang ◽  
Ting-ting Hou ◽  
...  

With resource crisis and environmental crisis increasingly grim, many countries turn the focus to pollution-free and renewable wind energy resources, which are mainly used for offshore wind power generation, seawater desalination and heating, etc., on the premise that the characteristics of resources are fully grasped. In this study, the evaluation of offshore wind energy in offshore waters in China, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of existing studies were overviewed from four aspects: the spatial-temporal characteristics of wind energy, wind energy classification, the short-term forecast of wind energy and the long-term projection of wind energy, according to the research content and the future considerations about wind energy evaluation (evaluation of wind energy on islands and reefs, the impact of wind energy development on human health) were envisaged, in the hope of providing a scientific basis for the site selection and business operation ‘or military applications’ here (after business operation), etc. of wind energy development, ‘aritime navigation against environmental construction,’ here and also contributing to the sustainable development and health of human beings.


Climate Law ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 336-352
Author(s):  
Natalie Jones

Wind energy is one of the world’s fastest growing forms of energy. It has many advantages over traditional forms of energy. However, visual impact is a disadvantage. Although planning applications for wind-farm developments are on the rise worldwide, the visual impact of potential developments repeatedly provokes opposition to new wind-farm projects. Litigation aimed at enjoining the construction of wind-energy facilities can slow wind-energy development and increase its cost. This article takes a comparative approach to such visual-impact litigation, looking at cases from Australia, New Zealand, and England in order to understand why planning cases are much more likely to succeed in some jurisdictions than others. I argue that in some jurisdictions decision-makers and courts are impliedly prioritizing the global, national, and local interests in favour of wind-farm development over the national and local interests in favour of landscape and visual-amenity protection.


2019 ◽  
Vol 105 (6) ◽  
pp. 1042-1052
Author(s):  
Simon Jennings ◽  
John Kennedy

Amplitude modulation (AM) is a characteristic of wind turbine noise that has only been recognised as an issue in recent years. It is a characteristic related to aerodynamic noise and descriptions of it include "swishing", "whooshing" or less frequently a "thumping" sound. Due to increased awareness among exposed communities AM presents a potentially serious obstacle to future wind farm developments. This work reports on the application of a recently developed calculation method for AM in a practical setting. Correlations will be drawn with subjective reports of AM by nearby residents keeping a noise diary. The suitability of the method and its ability to quantitatively confirm subjective reports of AM will be assessed. A study is presented here whereby subjectively recorded occurrences of AM by residents living near a wind energy development in Ireland are correlated to calculated levels over a twenty day period. In order to detect and calculate AM a method published by the Amplitude Modulation Working Group of the Institute of Acoustics, referred to as the Reference Method, is applied. A subjective assessment of the sound recordings to confirm the presence of AM is discussed, including estimating the expected frequency range that AM occurs. The results of the Reference Method calculation are presented for periods with and without a subjective report of AM by the residents. Consideration is given to the criteria and thresholds for valid AM ratings within the Reference Method especially where intermittent periods of AM are identified. The Reference Method is shown to be highly suitable as a quantitative measure of AM which correlates well with subjective reports. Caution must be taken when using the method as valid periods of AM may be overlooked due to the rigorous detection thresholds set by the method.


2019 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 187-195 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael D. Ferguson ◽  
Samantha L. Powers ◽  
Nate Trauntvein ◽  
Jeffrey B. Jacquet ◽  
Alan R. Graefe ◽  
...  

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