Every structure – whether a residential building or industrial plant – has an impact on the landscape and affects the immediate neighbors. The same goes for wind turbines. That is why the protection of people and nature plays a key role when planning, constructing and operating our wind farms.
Expert reports
In general, wind turbines may only be built on sites designated for this purpose by federal and state planning laws. Regional planning at state level and the land use plans of the municipalities only designate areas for wind energy that do not negatively impact other protected assets. Zones regarded as taboo include conservation areas, air traffic routes, water protection areas and other protective habitats.
EnBW’s wind energy planners only consider sites in legally sound locations. In addition to the wind conditions, they also check the legal situation at an early stage, examining immission control aspects such as noise and any shadows cast.
In the course of their site analysis, the wind experts examine whether a wind energy project is hampered by further restrictions (such as the distance to residential areas or species protection factors). The project developers have to obtain numerous reports from external experts – often working in the field of biology. This ensures that the wind farm project is compatible with the environment, people and nature.
The relevant licensing body or competent authority specifies which and how many investigations must be carried out. Besides the reports on wind potential, avifaunal and faunal surveys are equally common, as are reports on bats, noise and any shadows cast. Among other things, expert reports may require alternative accommodation to be found for bats. Here is an example from our Goldboden-Winterbach wind farm.
Numerous expert reports ensure that people, fauna and flora are protected. After all, wind turbines may only be located where species protection and nature conservation allow them to be built. This also means that fewer wind turbines may be built than actually planned.
Protection of species
South of the municipality of Winterbach im Remstal near Stuttgart lies EnBW’s Goldboden-Winterbach wind farm. Using complex methods during the planning phase, biologists found out that there are bat species and amphibians on the wind farm site that are subject to special protection. The measures taken by EnBW during the construction phase to protect these animals are explained by EnBW employee Tobias Borde and landscape ecologist Alexander Warsow, who is reviewing our conservation measures in his role as an independent expert.
Few stretches of land are as well studied in terms of wildlife as areas where wind turbines are planned. As far as particularly endangered species are concerned, there are precise specifications as to how their numbers should be documented. Bats, for example, are detected with a so-called batcorder. This “bat detector” records the creatures’ ultrasound noises. Experts can use these sounds to distinguish the individual species from one another with the aid of state-of-the-art analysis software.
At night, the biologists go on the hunt. With nets and a little luck, they manage to catch individual representatives of the different species. This supports the results delivered by the batcorder. Some of the animals captured by the nets are fitted with transmitters, making it possible to localize their roosts and also track their hunting routes.
Compensatory measures
Electricity generated from wind energy protects the climate. Compensatory measures and accompanying initiatives can further increase the benefits for the environment.
Large components are transported and anchored in the ground in order to build a wind turbine standing over 100 meters tall. Surfaces are sealed for the wind turbine foundations and the crane. Delivery routes are built to provide access to the construction site and later to the wind turbine. This is not possible without disrupting the natural surroundings. We make sure that any such disruption has a minimal impact on the environment and we also provide compensation. In doing so, we engage directly with the affected municipalities and authorities. This enables us to take into account pressing environmental concerns and draw up measures that suit the local conditions: We reforest felled trees elsewhere, plant orchards, clean up the ponds native to the Swabian Alb (known as “Hülen”) and we have even recultivated an old ammunition depot belonging to the German Armed Forces.