Wind turbine project FAQs

Wind turbine project

In this section you will find a series of frequently asked questions and answers, which will provide more background information on the project and on wind turbines in general.

NTU Project Specifics
Rationale
Common wind turbine questions
References

NTU Project Specifics

Q. How many turbines might be built and where would they be located?
A. Two turbines may be built and located on the south side of the campus in arable fields.

Q. How close would residential properties be to these turbines?
A. The closest non NTU residential properties are well over 0.5km from the proposed turbine locations. This is outside the buffer zone required for turbines of this size.

Q. How big are the proposed turbines going to be?
A. The turbines are likely to be up to 67m to the blade tip height.

Q. Who would own them?
A. NTU would completely own one of the turbines. A second turbine could be owned by a combination of the University and the local community.

Q. Where would the power be used?
A. It is proposed that all the electricity generated from the NTU turbine would be used directly on Brackenhurst campus. Electricity generated by an NTU-community turbine would be fed back into the national grid at Brackenhurst.

Q. Who is paying for the scheme?
A. NTU would meet the full cost of one of the turbines, subject to funding approval. The intention is the second turbine would be funded and owned by an NTU and community partnership investment.

Q. How much would they cost?
A. At present the full cost of this scheme is undetermined.

Q. Will I be able to invest in them?
A. It is intended that one of the two turbines would be funded and part owned by the community, providing them with an environmental and financial investment opportunity. Details on the options for investment and ownership will appear on this website if the project is given approval.

Q. How can I show my support?
A. Support the NTU proposal and send your thoughts to the planners; simply visit the eplanning website and enter the details onto the online form.

Q. How do I keep up to date with developments?
A. NTU will keep these webpages updated with any developments. Key developments will also be notified to the local press. The University also intends to hold public exhibitions at our Brackenhurst Campus which will be advertised on Ecoweb's news and events pages. You can also email the NTU Environment Team directly if you have any questions about the project.

Rationale

Q. Why invest in renewable energy?
A. In 2008 the UK government passed the Climate Change Act. The main target from this legislation is to cut carbon dioxide emissions by 80% by the year 2050. NTU also has a commitment to reduce the environmental impact of its operations. These turbines, along with other energy generation and efficiency projects, would help us do this and contribute towards the Government’s national targets.

Q. How much CO2 would this save?
A. Wind turbines are a renewable form of electricity generation. The proposed turbines at Brackenhurst would save approximately 400 tonnes of CO2 annually.

Q. Have NTU looked at alternatives to wind?
A. Yes. NTU have investigated and deployed a range of renewable energy options across our three campuses. These include solar photo voltaic panels, ground source heat pumps and the Nottingham district heating scheme.
At Brackenhurst, wind turbines would provide an excellent opportunity to generate renewable energy. NTU is also investigating other renewable energy projects at Brackenhurst. Unfortunately there are no opportunities for a hydroelectric scheme on the campus.

Q. Does this contribute towards local targets?
A. Newark and Sherwood District Council are currently in consultation regarding their Draft Climate Change Strategy (1). It is anticipated that they will formalise the district carbon reduction target to match the Government’s 80% cut by 2050. In addition to this they intend to explore the potential for the district to produce sustainable energy from renewable sources. These turbines would contribute towards both elements.

Q. Would they bring other benefits to the University?
A. Yes. It is intended that the turbines would become a valuable resource for both teaching and research taking place at the University. They would particularly benefit the School of Animal, Rural and Environmental Sciences which is based at Brackenhurst.

Common wind turbine questions

Q. Will it damage wildlife?
A. On shore wind turbines in the UK are subject to strict planning regulations and guidance from public bodies like Natural England. Environmental surveys will be undertaken on the proposed NTU site to ensure possible damage to the natural environment is minimised and where possible prevented.

In 2009 an RSPB report actively supported further wind energy projects to prevent climate change. It stated that (2) “Many wind farms have no discernible effects on wildlife at all. For those that do, seldom are the effects serious enough to affect wildlife populations”.

Natural England (who are responsible for protecting and enhancing England’s natural environment) propose to work proactively with the sustainable energy industry. To identify areas of England where sustainable energy development can proceed in a manner that balances the long term benefits for the natural environment with any short term impacts, where this approach does not conflict with the statutory requirements of the Habitats Regulations. (3)

Q. Will it affect horses in the local area?
A. Wind farming is popular with farmers, because their land can continue to be used for growing crops or grazing livestock. Studies have shown that sheep, cows and horses are not disturbed by wind turbines.

The first wind farm built in the UK, Delabole, has a stud farm and riding school, and the farmer, Peter Edwards, often rides around the wind farm on his horse. (4)

Q. Would the turbines generate lots of noise?
A. New modern wind turbines now generate levels of mechanical noise that are almost undetectable. There are strict guidelines protecting residential properties from wind turbine noise emissions and the NTU proposals would fully comply with these.

Q. Would they produce harmful low frequency noise?
A. A 2005 report by British Wind Energy Association (5) examined current knowledge in this area from around the world. It concluded that levels of low frequency noise and vibration from modern upwind configuration turbines were below the threshold of perception, even for those particularly sensitive to such noise. It also concluded that there is no evidence of direct health effects from wind turbines.

Q. Would they create a flicker?
A. Flicker occurs when the sun is low in the sky and shines on a building from behind a turbine rotor. This can cause the shadow of the turbine blades to be cast onto the building, which appears to flick on and off as the turbine rotates.

At a distance of 10 rotor diameters (approximately 340m in this project) a person should not perceive a wind turbine to be chopping through sunlight, but rather as an object with the sun behind it. This limits the zone of potential shadow flicker and normally there are no habitable buildings in these zones. (6)

Q. Would they affect local property prices?
A. There is currently no convincing evidence that wind turbines affect local house prices. Often local people who live near operating wind farms are the strongest advocates of wind energy, for example in the extension of the Fintry Wind Farm in Stirlingshire. (7)

Q. What is the life span of the turbines?
A. A wind turbine will typically last 20-25 years, however planning permissions may stipulate when the turbine must be decommissioned and the land returned to its current use.

Q. How much time do wind turbines produce electricity?
A. A modern wind turbine produces electricity 70-85% of the time, but it generates different outputs dependent on wind speed. Over the course of a year, it will generate about 30% of the theoretical maximum output. This is known as its load factor. The load factor of conventional power stations is on average 50%. (4) The two proposed turbines would generate enough electricity to power the equivalent of approximately 166 homes (8).

Q. Does wind energy require lots of back up power to work?
A. Wind energy forms part of the UK energy mix. There is already sufficient capacity in the system to accommodate the expansion of wind technologies to around 10% of the energy mix. The GB system operator. National Grid Transco stated that “the expected intermittency of wind does not appear to pose major problems for stability”. (9)

Q. Is it true that turbines take more energy to construct than they produce in their lifespan?
A. No. The average wind farm in the UK will pay back the energy used in its manufacture within six to eight months, this is comparable with coal or nuclear power stations, which take about six months. (4)

Q. What is the projected timescale of the development?
A. NTU submitted a full planning application to Newark and Sherwood Council in June 2011 and should know the outcome by the end of August. If planning permission is granted NTU would then have three years to commence the project.