ENEM101 Wind Mapping Assignment Brief

Submission deadline: Friday 22nd November 2024, 12pm.

Submission format: Electronic, via ELE

This assignment is worth 20% of the overall module mark.

Outline: Wind turbine development opportunities in the Roseland peninsula

The mapping exercise is an initial analysis to identify potential wind energy development sites in the Roseland peninsula by considering the wind energy potential and development constraints for different turbine sizes. This will involve mapping the area in QGIS and evaluating all the relevant constraints on turbine locations. Please include reasonable amount of detail in textboxes as your submission will be used as a stand- alone presentation of your findings for local discussion and consultation.

The objectives of this assignment are: a) Demonstrate your ability to make use of GIS software b) Demonstrate knowledge of relevant wind farm development parameters (constraints/buffers/mitigation).

Background

An active  local energy group are  keen to  understand  the  potential for wind  in the Roseland peninsula. The Neighbourhood Development Plan (NDP) is on the ELE page and this shows the included parishes and planning framework.

For a parish of your choice in the Roseland Peninsula, you may recommend new sites for development and/or suggest the re-powering/extension of existing projects.

You will prepare up to Four A3-sized maps of the relevant area. This will include a main map up to A3 size*; and at least one inset map**; and a table of the sites you have identified***. Further insets may be used if you feel they are appropriate and/or useful.

Ensure that the title block of your map contains title, date, and STUDENT NUMBER - NOT YOUR NAME. Ideally, within the title block area, an additional table of notes should be included that indicates the sources of data used in preparing the map and table.

Note that all maps should be accompanied by a legend, a suitable scale, a North arrow and any relevant copyright notice.

*The maps will show i) all the candidate/potential sites; ii) polygons indicating the extent of designated/constrained areas restricting development; iii) site boundaries; iv) relevant geographic information (locations of towns, the road and power distribution networks etc.); and v) your table of candidate sites (See below ***).

**This inset map - approximately A5/A4 size - will give the detailed local constraints affecting your preferred site. It will also include turbine location information and potential access tracks etc.

***Produce a list/table of prospective sites (maximum of 10) - numbered and giving site name, 12 figure e.g. E123456 & N987654 site centre location, wind speed & other useful information- that meet the site suitability criteria.

Site suitability

1)   Wind speed. Not less than 7.5 m/s at 45 m above ground level.

2)   Site access. Site entrances should be no more than 500 metres from the public road network (including minor roads).

3)   Proximity to electrical distribution (33kV) networks (within 5 km).

4)   Microwave links. The turbine(s) should not stand within the buffer zone of an existing microwave communication link.

5)   Urban areas. For ≤ 12MW, turbines should be at least 5 x Tip-height from the nearest non-financially involved dwelling to minimise disturbance by turbine noise or shadow flicker. For >12MW, turbines should beat least 6 x Tip-height from the nearest dwelling non-financially involved dwelling.

6)   Watercourses. The sites should have a clearance of 50m from any mapped river, lake, stream, or other watercourses.

7)   You should apply relevant buffers to any sensitive features you identify.

8)   Environmental criteria. You should clarify if your sites impinge on any of the following:

a.  Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty

b.  National Parks

c.  Sites of Special Scientific Interest

d.  Special Protected Areas

e.  Special Areas of Conservation

f.   National Nature Reserves

g.  Local Nature Reserves

h.  RAMSARS (International wetlands designation)

i.   World Heritage Sites

j.   Scheduled Monuments

k.  Heritage Coasts

9)   Aspect: By visual interpretation of the OS maps or use of QGIS - the location should, preferably, be approximately facing the South-West compass 'quadrant' since the prevailing wind direction is assumed to be from the south-west.

10) Slope: By visual interpretation of the OS maps use of QGIS - the slope of the site should be less than 15 degrees for construction considerations.

11) By visual interpretation of Google Earth aerial images, confirm there are no constraints affecting your main chosen site that have not appeared on OS maps.

Use NOABL data for the wind speeds. Strategi, Meridian and Land-line/Mastermap, Digimap products contain vector road network data.

You may use the previously supplied QGIS tables as a guide for the electrical distribution network and microwave links. Use OS maps of appropriate scales for the backgrounds to your finished maps.

QGIS tables are available to model most of these environmental criteria on ELE. Natural England has on-line up-to-date constraint data in QGIS format. Data for the remaining criteria lie within the Edina Digimap products. If you wish to edit some of these datasets you will need to re-save them under an alternative name before you are able to do so.

Assessment Submission Procedure

Your final printout is intended to be as clear and informative as possible. There can be issues in converting your on-screen finished map layout to a PDF file - loss of image quality or the computer might seize-up - because of the potential file size and the PDF print software version you have. Resolution of the images should be at least 300 dpi.

You must follow the instructions regarding the hand-in and ensure your file is suitable for printing.

•   The hand-in must be anonymous

•    Image quality should be maintained when exporting a PDF file for electronic hand in. Please check the images before submitting the assignment