Wind for Change
Apr 26, 2010 by John Duffy
L – P : Archaeology was commissioned to provide archaeological and cultural heritage expertise for several of the proposed wind farms across North England for BT plc’s Wind for Change Project. L – P undertook assessments in Lancashire, County Durham and Teeside as part of the formal Environmental Impact Assessment required by planning authorities.
Archaeological work for each of the sites included the preparation of a Desk Based Assessment, which included a site walkover as well as study of past landscapes. Many of the wind farms were to be located close to conservation areas, listed buildings and Scheduled Ancient Monuments as well as significant and as yet undesignated sites and areas; all of which needed to be taken into account.
L – P’s experience on other wind farm projects was evident when undertaking the BT plc project where specialist assessment of the setting, type and character of archaeological remains and built heritage, along with their national and local significance, was needed to inform the relative sensitivity of heritage assets to each proposed development. The initial DBA formed the baseline data for the Cultural Heritage chapter of the EIA and contributed data to the Visual Impact chapter. Reports were prepared by L – P : Archaeology, working with the environmental consultant team at Environmental Resources Management.
Through this multi-stranded project L – P : Archaeology has gained expertise in contributing to assessments of Visual Impact and assisted in securing planning permissions for wind farms set in a variety of landscapes in Northern England.
| Client: | BT plc |
| Site: | Several sites in Northern England |
| Development type: | Energy |