East Anglia ONE Offshore Windfarm Landscape Management PlanWork No 38 to 41
August, 2016
4 Landscape Scheme 4.1 General overview 19.
The location, shape and internal arrangement of the substation are defined by strict technical constraints and health and safety requirements. These aspects of the proposal were beyond the scope of the landscape design proposals, which are more concerned with how the substation is contained within the surrounding landscape.
20.
During design development, three approaches to the landscape design were considered – ‘hidden’, ‘integrated’ and ‘exposed’. These options are described as follows:
The ‘hidden approach’ - focuses on reducing the impact of the substation on the existing space. The hidden approach has extensive landscape screening to hide the substation, which limits the recognisability of the function of the substation while pylons and power lines remain visible, and has a lower change on the rural character. However, the scale of the substation is often hard to completely hide, and power lines and pylons approaching the substation often remain clearly visible. The hidden approach can be achieved with vegetation/woodland planting all around the substation, or on the side of the main observers.
The ‘integrated approach’ - focuses on reducing the impact of the substation on the existing space, without completely hiding the substation. The strength of this approach is to use the existing landscape structure to embed the substation, and still show the function of the substation as part of the electricity grid. The integrated approach has some landscape screening, but expands existing electrical characteristics, enabling the observer to understand the function of the substation, with a more moderate change to the rural character. The integrated approach can be achieved using woodland clumps/shelterbelts and/or hedgerows.
The ‘exposed approach’ - focuses less on the spatial impact and more on the recognisability of the function. The functional relationship between substation and grid clearly shows the nature of the electricity grid. The exposed approach has limited/no landscape screening, with high recognisability of the function of the development, but also a high change to the rural character. The ‘exposed approach’ concentrates on emphasizing the substation e.g. through new architectural elements/installations, combined with specifically coloured elements of the substation, or emphasis through planting and management of vegetation in a specific form.
21.
The landscape design approach selected for the substation combines the approaches of hiding and integrating the development into the landscape to meet the agreed mitigation requirements and also as a response to the local landscape character. This approach results in the substation having a relatively low landscape and visual impact (as opposed to an approach where the substation is even more emphasised). Specifically placed woodland blocks/shelterbelts and hedgerows are to hide and integrate the substation, reducing the visual impact in specific views towards the substation experienced by people from residential areas, roads and public rights of way, while allowing the function of the substation to be recognised when in closer proximity.
22.
This approach acknowledges the key requirement for visual screening of the substation, which has been a clear preference expressed during public and stakeholder consultations. Due to technical constraints, it would be unrealistic to completely screen the entirety of the substation, therefore some element of integration is required and is considered suitable to allow some recognisability of the function of the grid connection developments, when viewed in the context of the existing National Grid infrastructure nearby.
23.
This landscape management plan proposes both screening earthworks and woodland planting to address the main aim of providing visual screening of the substation. New hedgerows are also to be planted to supplement the woodland framework around the substation. The landscape plan also provides areas of species rich grassland and SuDS ponds, providing enhanced habitat benefits in their own right, while also providing further visual contrast with the ‘technological’ appearance of the substation.
24.
This landscape management plan seeks to ensure early establishment of tree and hedgerow planting, in order to deliver mitigation as early as possible.
East Anglia ONE – EA1-CON-F-GBE-008554
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