Comment
Baby steps not giant leaps for wind power in national planning policy reforms
The third in our series on the Government’s consultation on the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill: reforms to national planning policy focuses on amendments to onshore wind policy. Small steps have been taken in the right direction but go nowhere near far enough argues Director, Mark Worcester, as he reviews the proposals and the implications for future developments.
The background of onshore wind policy
Prior to 2015, phrases such as shadow flicker, ice throw, topple-distance, NATS and bird-strike were regularly used by professionals involved in the promotion of onshore wind farms in England.
Planning officers understood the need for balanced decision making and the benefits to be realised, often supporting sensitively designed schemes in appropriate locations. Planning Committee members remained cautious.
Then, along came a Ministerial Statement from the then Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Greg Clark[1], which brought about an immediate moratorium on onshore wind, with policy later incorporated into the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) in 2018.
The NPPF required (and still requires) that any new onshore wind development in England be located in an area identified as being suitable in an adopted development plan, and that the potential impacts identified by the local community (following consultation) have been fully addressed and the project has their backing.
An extremely high and seemingly impossible policy hurdle.
Projects deemed acceptable by local authorities were recovered for determination by the Secretary of State and decisions to grant permission on appeal overturned (including one of my own).
Coupled with the cessation of financial subsidies, the policy changes had the desired effect. The onshore wind industry went into shock and eventual retreat, remaining dormant for almost eight years notwithstanding a greater understanding of climate change, the importance of net zero and increasing concerns regarding national energy security and the cost of energy.
However, in December 2022 the Government published, for consultation, proposed changes to the NPPF. Those relating to onshore wind respond to previous commitments made in respect of delivering cheaper, cleaner and more secure energy in the places local communities wish to see.
The consultation is ‘live’ until the 2 March 2023 with the Government intending to implement the proposed changes in the spring.
Repowering & life extensions
The proposed amendments to the NPPF include new and specific policy wording to address proposals for the repowering of and life-extensions to existing wind farms.
Repowering generally involves replacing older existing turbines with more powerful and efficient models that allow power generation to be maintained on a site and in some cases increased, often with fewer turbines.
Paragraph 160 (as proposed to be amended) advises decision makers to approve the repowering and life extension of existing wind farms where impacts are, or can be made, acceptable. It advises that the impacts should be assessed against the baseline existing on the site at the time of the application (i.e. within the existing wind farm in-situ).
This policy wording establishes a presumption in favour of permission being granted and has the effect of applicants needing only to assess the additional impact which repowering / life extension would have on identified receptors, over and above the effects being realised from the existing wind farm at the time of the application.
In some cases (particularly where a fewer number of turbines is proposed - albeit potentially taller and more powerful) it may be possible to argue that such impacts would be reduced, and in other cases that impacts would only be marginally greater but still acceptable.
Crucially, and unlike the policy for new onshore wind developments (see below), there is no requirement to demonstrate community support and no requirement for projects to be located in areas identified in a development plan or other policy document as being suitable for onshore wind.
Hopefully, these policy provisions will stimulate additional market interest although it is recognised that there are other technical, financial and regulatory matters beyond the planning regime which also need to be addressed in order for such schemes to come forward.
These would include new agreements with land-owners, project financing and grid capacity although this latter point can be addressed through co-locating other technologies such as battery storage and electrolysers for hydrogen production.
Where existing projects benefit from the UK’s Renewable Obligation Certificate Scheme (and will continue to do so until 2027) applications for life extensions are more likely, whereas after 2027 developers may begin to turn to applications for repowering.
New onshore wind developments
Disappointingly the proposed policy amendments for new onshore wind farms are less progressive and do not go far enough. There is a clear sense of political compromise and a missed opportunity.
The policy continues to presume against new developments, indicating that such schemes should not be considered acceptable unless an area is identified as being suitable in either an adopted development plan or a supplementary planning document (SPD) (where the parent development plan contains a policy supporting renewable energy) and it can be demonstrated, following consultation, that the impacts identified by the affected local community have been satisfactorily addressed and the proposal has community support.
Sound familiar?
That said, some adjustments have been made to the detailed policy wording which at first go unnoticed but on closer review may improve the prospects of success for some schemes. Whether to the extent sufficient to stimulate a renaissance in the sector is, however, debatable.
These include:
- The ability for LPAs to identify areas suitable for onshore wind development within SPDs (effectively avoiding the time-consuming and cumbersome local plan process). This will provide LPAs with greater flexibility and the ability to be more responsive to changing national and local circumstances. It will also help to address the problem that, in March 2022, 89% of LPAs had not identified areas suitable for onshore wind in their development plan[2].
- The requirement for impacts to be “satisfactorily addressed” rather than “fully addressed” (as in the existing policy wording) is accepting of the fact that, with commercial scale onshore wind turbines, there will always be some residual adverse effects which are not capable of mitigation and which are, in some instances, significant but nonetheless acceptable having regard to the benefits of the development as-a-whole. This small adjustment in policy wording will provide decision makers with greater flexibility to determine the acceptability or otherwise of impacts.
- The proposals for the Government to establish partnerships with local communities wishing to host onshore wind farms in return for community benefits such as reduced energy costs is promising, although there is little detail at this stage.
- The proposal within Footnote 62 that onshore wind developments may be granted through a Local Development Order, Neighbourhood Development Order or Community Right to Buy Order (if it can be demonstrated that impacts have been “appropriately” addressed and the project has community support) is of note yet lacking further detail. It is a provision worthy of further investigation. The ability to secure consent for onshore wind farms out-with the formal planning application process may have wide-spread appeal to industry.
Notwithstanding the adjustments outlined above, the requirement to demonstrate the support of the local community remain worrisome and, in the context of climate change and economic growth objectives, is, in our view, a missed opportunity.
No other form of development in England is required to demonstrate community support as a pre-requisite for consent; indeed a significant number of major schemes are approved in the face of community opposition.
And even though the Public Attitudes Tracker by BEIS suggests that 78%[3] of the public are supportive of onshore wind, it is conceivable that localised objection will remain, particularly from residents in closest proximity.
In the circumstances, one can only hope that, if this policy requirement remains, host communities and other stakeholders take a more balanced and considered approach in responding to proposals recognising that, in order for climate change to be addressed, for our national energy security to increase and for energy costs to reduce, compromises have to be made.
We therefore await further proposed amendments to Planning Practice Guidance (PPG) which, it is promised, will provide developers advice on how they may demonstrate that impacts identified by communities have been satisfactorily addressed.
We also await the Government’s consultation on how projects may demonstrate community support. Effective and innovative stakeholder engagement and a comprehensive package of community benefits are likely to be critical.
A small step in the right direction
Taken as a whole, the proposed changes represent a small step in the right direction. The policy framework for the repowering of existing projects is supportive, with project delivery now more likely to be influenced by a broader range of market and technical considerations.
The framework for new projects has also been eased albeit not to any significant degree, and much will depend upon the further detail to be presented in Planning Practice Guidance in relation to satisfactorily addressing impacts and demonstrating community support.
Ultimately, more radical policy change may require a change of Government. The Labour Party has committed its support for onshore wind, pledging to lift the barriers to delivery. With the next general election less than two years away, those with aspirations for a return to pre-2013 may wish to start planning now.
For more information, to discuss the article or a specific project please contact Mark Worcester.
We have secured planning permission for a number of onshore wind farms and other forms of renewable and low carbon energy throughout the UK. Our Planning Team often acts in collaboration with our specialist EIA and Strategic Communication Teams to help clients deliver projects which are sensitive to their location and which maximise community support.
20 January 2023
[1] DCLG-Planning.pdf (parliament.uk)
[2] Research by University of West of England - Onshore wind preliminary findings.pdf
[3] NPPF Consultation, 2022