3
identification of alternative site locations
In order to meet the above requirement, a
site selection exercise has been carried out.
The purpose of the assessment was to determine the most suitable area
for development of a large-scale wind farm in
In addition to siting
alternatives the Study Brief requires
that other alternatives such as construction and design/engineering aspects of
the development be considered. These
aspects are presented further in Section
4 and Section 5.
3.2
Selection of Assessment Methodology
In accordance with the EIA Study Brief (Clause 2.1 (iii)), alternative sites for
the proposed wind farm have been considered with a view to avoid or minimise
potential environmental impacts to ecological sensitive areas and other
sensitive uses, to compare the environmental benefits and disbenefits
of each site and provide reasons for selecting the preferred site and describe
the part that environmental factors have played in the selection.
In order to identify sites based on the
above principles, a site selection exercise has been conducted following a
similar approach as that from previous EIA studies approved under the EIAO.
Example studies include:
·
Liquefied
Natural Gas (LNG) Receiving Terminal and Associated Facilities (EIA-125/2006)
·
A
Commercial Scale Wind Turbine Pilot Demonstration at Hei
Ling Chau (EIA-124/2006)
·
New
Contaminated Mud Marine Disposal Facility at Airport East / East Sha Chau Area (EIA-106/2005)
·
Renewable
Energy by a Wind Turbine System on
By following approaches similar to those
adopted under previously approved studies, it is considered the approach used
in this assessment is both sound and adequate for the purposes of a site
selection exercise.
3.3
Consideration of Onshore Wind Farm Sites
Consideration has been given to the
potential location of a wind farm onshore to determine if onshore development
is possible or preferred. The following
presents the key conclusion of this assessment.
It would be more likely that the layout
for an onshore wind farm would be a linear arrangement. It is likely that this arrangement would need
to be along ridge tops in hilly topography.
A
preliminary assessment of the wind resource within the Hong Kong SAR has been
undertaken using the industry standard model for wind flow modelling (Wind
Atlas Analysis and Application Programme (WAsP)) ([2]).
The WAsP model is recognised as the industry
standard for wind flow modelling and was developed by the Wind Energy and
Atmospheric Physics Department at the Risø National
Laboratory in
Studies carried out by CLP (1) and
HK Electric for the construction of Pilot Demonstration Wind Turbines onshore
in Hong Kong have identified large areas that are too constrained for the
development of onshore wind turbines.
Some of the key aspects that have been identified as constraining
development are listed in Table 3.1.
These
constraints have been mapped as part of the CLP 2006 study ([3]).
When these constraints are overlain with areas of low wind power
resource (< 200 W/m2) ([4]), there is very little opportunity to
develop a large-scale onshore wind farm in Hong Kong as shown in Figure
3.1. Figure 3.1 also provides a grid that represents the
area required for the development of an onshore wind farm in geometric pattern
(approximately 6 km2) and it is clear that such a layout is not
possible in
Table 3.1 Summary
of Constraints
|
Constraints to Development |
|
Environmental |
|
Country Parks |
|
Special Areas |
|
Ramsar
Sites |
|
Wild Animals Protection Areas |
|
Sites of Special Scientific Interest |
|
Heritage
Sites |
|
Conservation
Areas |
|
Green
Turtle Nesting Ground |
|
Gazetted
beaches |
|
|
|
Physical |
|
Areas with Residential and Commercial
Premises |
|
Transport
Networks |
|
Hong Kong |
|
|
|
People’s |
|
|
|
Planning |
|
Areas with High Population Density
greater than 30,000 per km2 |
The areas identified as having potential
for development are small and tend to be situated in areas of high and steep
topography. These areas are typically less
disturbed and have potentially greater sensitivity for ecology, visual impacts,
recreational hikers and other planning issues.
There is also an issue associated with feeding electricity generated to
grid, which may not be immediately available due to the remoteness of sites and
is likely to be extremely expensive to construct. In addition, only sites on
For the scale of wind farm being proposed
by HK Electric, development would probably require the construction of a number
of smaller turbine arrays covering a significant area. Development of this type could lead to
relatively high adverse cumulative impacts on habitats and species, visual
environment and transport.
Site specific issues were addressed during
the site selection process for CLPs demonstration
project ([1]) and
results showed that there are a range of local issues that would the
development of a large-scale wind farm very difficult in the areas identified
in Figure 3.1.
Given the above constraints for the
development, it is considered that onshore development of a large-scale wind
farm is a not a viable option in
3.4
Offshore Wind Farm Site Selection Methodology
The approach to achieving the above stated objectives
for this study is centred on the following tasks.
3.4.2
Offshore
Wind Farm Design and Construction Assumptions
In order to guide the assessment of site
alternatives, a number of design assumptions have been made based on the
consideration of alternative design and construction methods (see Section 4) and the Project Description
(see Section 5). It is expected that the assumptions will be
further refined once a site or sites have been selected for further engineering
design. In summary, the key components
of the project would include the following:
·
Development
of an onshore lay down area and quayside for material storage and pre-assembly
works.
·
The
construction of less than thirty five 2.3 to 3.6MW class wind turbine units,
including seabed works required for foundation emplacement.
·
The
installation of interconnecting submarine electricity cables between turbine
units, to the offshore substation and, to the grid.
·
Construction
of an offshore substation.
·
Development
of a meteorological monitoring mast.
It should be noted with the above that the
laydown area selected for the study is the Lamma Power Station Extension (LPSE). The rationale for this selection is that a
large laydown area is required to receive the heavy
and bulky wind turbine components, and for onshore assembly of the wind
turbines, with the LPSE readily meeting this requirement. As offshore construction works will be
affected by weather and sea conditions and, are extremely expensive, it is an
industry practice to maximize the extent of onshore assembly works such as
having the turbine blades installed onto the nacelle so as to minimize the
duration of offshore works. This is also
preferred from an environmental perspective as it reduces potential disturbance
at sea to both marine life (e.g. marine mammals) and marine traffic. Considering the heavy lifting requirements
for the quay and laydown area, few if any suitable
areas other than LPSE are ready to meet these needs within
|
|
|
|
|
|
3.4.3
Phase
1 Constraints Assessment
Key constraints have been identified that have the
potential to affect the development of an offshore wind farm in
·
Absolute
Constraints - These issues are seen to present an 'absolute' obstacle to development
justified by the presence of highly significant issues. This includes locations in which Government
departments would not allow the wind farm to be constructed and are thereby
recommended to be avoided from the outset.
·
Potential
Obstacles to development - Areas that are considered to either be important
in terms of their environmental value, technical issues; or areas recognised by
Government departments that. Although
not considered to be “no go areas”, their potential will need to be taken into
account during the site selection so as to facilitate future permitting
requirements and to allow an objective assessment of the implementation of
risk. Development is possible in areas
where Potential Obstacles have been identified.
However, these issues would require further detailed study to evaluate
whether they represent an obstacle to development and risk to the delivery of
the project.
A series of environmental, physical and planning criteria
have been identified for the above constraints.
It is against these criteria that a decision has to be made as to
whether areas are considered to be incompatible with the siting
and operation of the wind farm.
The spatial assessment of constraints has
incorporated a mapping technique based around a Geographic Information System
(GIS), where the criteria have been overlaid onto digital base maps to assist
in screening out areas that are incompatible for development.
Constraint mapping techniques have long been used in
site selection studies to bring together environmental, engineering and
planning considerations in an overall assessment. This is achieved through the collation of
layers of mapped information showing features, constraints and engineering/planning
proposals, and hence identification of unconstrained areas. Constraint mapping provides a means of taking
account of potentially conflicting land or seabed uses in a structured and
rigorous way, particularly when the capabilities of a computer-assisted GIS are
utilised.
Areas that were not considered as being absolutely
constrained (hereinafter referred to as Potential
Development Areas), were taken forward for further study in order to
identify preferred areas for siting of the wind farm (see
Phase 2.
3.4.4
Phase
2 Constraints Assessment
The objective of the Phase 2 work has been to
determine the significance of identified potential impacts in potential
development areas. The assessment has
considered the environmental, physical and planning issues in more detail
across the potential development areas.
The purpose of this assessment will be to identify areas where impacts
may be greater and/or development more difficult. By identifying differentiators across the
potential development areas a preferred site for development has been
identified.
3.5
Phase 1 – Strategic constraints
3.5.1
Introduction
This section provides a list of screening criteria,
which may be considered as potential constraints to the construction and
operation of a wind farm within the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
(HKSAR). The Study Area for the siting aspects includes the whole of
The screening criteria, or constraints, identified
under subheadings are summarised in Table
3.2. Some of the absolute
constraints are terrestrial in nature, but have been included here for
completeness, particularly with consideration of cable landing areas.
Table 3.2 Summary
of Classification of Constraints
|
Absolute Constraints |
Potential Obstacles to Development |
|
Environmental |
Environmental |
|
· Restricted
Areas (Wild Animals Protection Ordinance) |
Hong Kong Geopark |
|
· Coastal Protection Areas and
Conservation Areas |
|
|
· Sites of Special Scientific Interest
(SSSI) |
|
|
· |
|
|
· Designated Marine Parks or Marine
Reserve |
|
|
· Fish Culture Zones |
|
|
· Gazetted Artificial Reef |
|
|
|
|
|
Physical |
Physical |
|
· Restricted Areas |
· Submarine Utilities |
|
· Typhoon Shelters / |
· Helicopter Instrument Flight Rules
Routes |
|
· Existing Anchorages |
|
|
· Marine Vessel Fairways |
|
|
· Navigation Radar |
|
|
· Designated or Gazetted Areas of Marine
Dredging and Mud Disposal |
|
|
· Areas of Current Reclamation |
|
|
· Hong Kong |
|
|
· |
|
|
· Areas of Insufficient Wind Resource |
|
|
· Water Depth >40m |
|
|
· Helicopter Visual Flight Rules Lateral
Separation limits |
|
|
|
|
|
Planning |
Planning |
|
· Gazetted Bathing Beaches |
· Areas of recreational value |
|
|
|
The following provides a discussion of the findings
of the Phase 1 screening assessment against each of the above criteria.
3.5.2
Absolute
Constraints to Development
Environmental
Wild
Animal Protection Areas
The Restricted
Areas (Wild Animals Protection Ordinance) (Cap. 170) restricts access to designated areas of wildlife
habitat. Under the Ordinance three areas
have been designated as Wild Animal Protection Areas and are protected by the
Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department. These areas are identified as the Mai Po
Marshes, Sham Wan Green Turtle Nesting Area on Lamma
Island and the Yim Tso Ha Egretry ([5]), as shown in Figure 3.2. These
areas can be considered to be Absolute Constraints to development.
Coastal
Protection Areas and Conservation Areas
To promote the environment, areas of conservation
value may be declared as Conservation Zones under the Town Planning Ordinance (Cap. 131).
Such areas include Coastal Protection Areas, which have been identified
to retain natural coastline, and Conservation Areas, which have been identified
to retain existing natural features and rural use (Figure 3.2). These areas can be considered to be Absolute
Constraints to development.
Sites of
Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs)
Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) may be land based or marine sites that are of
special interest because of their flora, fauna, geographical, geological or
physiographic features as identified by the Agriculture, Fisheries and
Conservation Department.
A total of twenty-three Country Parks and fifteen
Special Areas (eleven of which lie inside Country Parks) have been established
in Hong Kong under the Country Parks
Ordinance (Cap. 208), which provides a legal framework for their
designation, development and management.
In total, the area of land protected under this Ordinance covers
approximately 42,000 ha. Country Parks
comprise scenic hills, woodlands, reservoirs and coastline throughout
Designated
There are currently four designated
·
Marine
Parks - Yan
Chau Tong
- Hoi
Ha Wan
- Tung
Ping Chau
- Sha Chau and
·
Marine
Reserve -
The Marine Parks Ordinance (Cap. 476) allows
for the strict control of a number of activities within marine parks and reserves,
including development. As such these
areas can be considered to be Absolute Constraints to the siting of a proposed wind farm in
Fish
Culture Zones
Marine fish culture in
Mariculture fishery operations occur at 26 fish
culture zones (FCZs), occupying about 209 ha of
Gazetted
Artificial Reef
At present, the Agriculture, Fisheries and
Conservation Department are undertaking an artificial reef deployment programme
to enhance fisheries and promote bio-diversity in
Physical
Restricted
Areas
There are three types of restricted areas in
Typhoon
Shelters /
There are fourteen public-use typhoon shelters
located within
Existing
Anchorages
There are a total of nineteen existing anchorages in
Marine
Vessel Fairways
The offshore wind farm has to avoid navigation
channels, fairways and other shipping lanes to prevent obstruction to marine
traffic. A study of Hong Kong’s marine
traffic, based on a review of Marine Department casualty files between 1992 and
1994, has subsequently designated four different marine categories to signify
risk ([9]).
These areas are presented on Figure 3.4 and are as follows:
·
Highly
restricted water area with high traffic volumes;
·
Highly
restricted water area with low traffic volumes;
·
Lamma Power Station access route;
·
Unrestricted
water area with high traffic volumes; and,
·
Unrestricted
water area with low traffic volumes.
All of these categories are considered to be Absolute Constraints to the siting of a wind
farm.
In addition to these areas, frequently used access
channels to
·
The Tathong Channel, which is the main access
channel on the eastern side of
·
The East
Lamma Channel, which is the major entry and exit
route for
·
The West
Lamma Channel, which is mainly used by traffic to
and from southerly destination and primarily by general cargo vessels.
·
The Adamasta Channel, which is used mainly by
smaller cargo vessels to and from the southwest and the high speed ferries to
and from
There are also a number of other shipping routes in
Navigation
Radar
The Marine Department’s Surveillance system includes
radar stations across
Designated
or Gazetted Areas of Marine Dredging and Mud Disposal
The Civil Engineering and Development Department
(CEDD) of the Hong Kong SAR Government currently maintains a number of gazetted
areas in
·
Areas
gazetted for sand dredging and sediment disposal;
·
Allocated
marine borrow area;
·
Open
sea disposal area for disposal of uncontaminated sediments;
·
Exhausted
sand borrow pit for disposal of uncontaminated sediments;
·
Contained
pits for disposal of contaminated sediment;
·
Sand
deposits extent prior to dredging.
Each of the above is considered to be an Absolute
Constraint to the siting of a wind farm in
Areas of
Current, Future or Proposed Reclamation
Civil Engineering and Development Department records ([11])
indicate several areas of
current, future or proposed reclamation including at
Hong Kong
The siting of the wind farm
should comply with the building height restrictions in vicinity of the Hong
Kong Disneyland as stated in the Deed of Restrictive Covenant signed between
the HKSAR Government and Walt Disney Company (Figure 3.6). This area is considered to be an Absolute Constraint to the siting of a wind farm in
The siting of the proposed
wind farm should comply with the Airport Height Restriction (AHR) which was
established under the
Areas of
Insufficient Wind Resource
Areas where wind power
density has been identified by EMSD as above 200 W/m2 can be
considered as preferred sites for the development of wind power generation
facilities. Figure 3.8 ([12]) presents the wind power
density over the region of Hong Kong and indicates that most of the
Water
Depth
One of the requirements of the proposed wind farm
would be a maximum water depth of around -40mPD taking into account of the
technical and economic considerations.
Sites with shallower water depths are more preferable to HK Electric as
the cost of turbine foundation increases with water depths almost
proportionately. As such, water depth
below -40mPD is considered to be an Absolute
Constraint to the siting of a wind farm in
Helicopter Visual Flight
Rules Lateral Separation Limits
There are two types of Helicopter Routes within the
Hong Kong Flight Information Region ([13]).
The routes are:
·
Oil
Rig Support Helicopter Routes; and
·
Hong
Kong –
Since the Oil Rig Support Helicopter Routes are not within the region of
Hong Kong waters, only the
Key routes are shown on Figure 3.11. Two types of flying procedure are adopted on
these routes: Visual Flight Rules (VFR) and Instrument Flight Rules (IFR). There is a regulatory requirement that
helicopters flying VFR would be required to fly no closer than 500 feet to any
fixed point obstacle according to the Air
Navigation Ordinance. The separation
distance therefore present a constraint to development and is considered to be
an Absolute Constraint.
Planning
Gazetted
Bathing Beaches
There are currently forty-one gazetted beaches in
3.5.3
Potential
Obstacles to Development
Environmental
Geoconservation Areas
The site selection exercise has also taken into
account the proximity of the sites to the Hong Kong National Geopark. A Geopark can be recognised nationally or
internationally. Nationally there are
various networks such as the Japan Geopark Network
and the National Geoparks of PR
In 2008, the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation
Department (AFCD) commissioned a study to examine the feasibility of
establishing a Geopark in
The Hong Kong Government has established the first Geopark as part of their efforts to enhance the overall
quality of life and to conserve representative geological landscapes. The Geopark will be
managed under the framework of the
The Hong Kong Government authorities have plans to enhance
the publicity, knowledge building and educational awareness relating to geodiversity within the Geopark. These plans include geo-walks for each of the
eight Geosites and Geopark
visitor centres at the existing Lions Nature Education Centre (Tsiu Hang) and Pak Tam Chung Country Park Visitor
Centre. A new guidebook on the Geopark, produced by AFCD, will be launched in November
2009 and educational programmes have to be developed for schools. The Education Bureau are already running
secondary teacher training including a guide to field tours of the Geopark.
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Physical
Submarine
Utilities (Cables, Pipelines and Outfalls)
There are numerous submarine cables, pipelines and
outfalls in
Helicopter
Instrument Flight Rules Routes
As discussed in Section
3.4.2 there are two types of flying procedure that are adopted on
helicopter routes in
Planning
Areas of
Recreational Value
Apart from the recreational value provided by Hong
Kong’s Country Parks,
3.6
Presentation
of Phase 1 Results
3.6.1
Site
Selection
The areas considered to be Absolute Constraints to the siting of a
wind farm in
Those areas where absolute constraints have been
identified are discounted from any further investigation. In addition, at this stage of assessment it
was considered necessary to determine as to whether it would possible to fit a
wind farm array in the unconstrained areas (i.e. around 35 turbines with
approximately 500 m lateral separation).
Areas where it was found that this was not possible were discounted. Eight Potential
Development Areas resulted from this process as shown in Figure
3.15 and listed below.
·
Site
1:
·
Site
2:
·
Site
3: South Ninepins
·
Site
4: East of Basalt and
·
Site
5: Eastern Offshore
·
Site
6: East Tai Long Wan
·
Site
7: East Tap Mun
·
Site
8: Kat O – Yantian
Potential obstacles to development have also been
identified during Phase 1 in relation to these areas. In addition, the eight sites are subject to a
range of other environmental and marine navigation constraints. These issues were addressed under Phase 2
work discussed in Section 3.6.
It is noted that Site 5 lies within an
area identified as the Marine Police Ninepins Range (marked as Area VHD-11 on
Notice to Airmen Charts), used for firing practices etc (Box 3). If the VHD-11 Area
was in active use it would eliminate a large portion of the site. There would still be sufficient area
available for siting the wind farm though it is noted
that this would be in the deeper waters of Site 5.
|
|
It is noted that for this reason the Hong
Kong Offshore Wind Farm EIA ([16])
excluded the VHD-11 Area
which if applied to the present EIA would eliminate the majority of Site 5 and
render it not suitable for siting a wind farm.
Preliminary consultation with Civil
Aviation Department and Hong Kong Police (Marine Police) has indicated that the
area is rarely utilised so the site has not been excluded at this stage of this
EIA.
3.6.2
Cable
Landing
The potential areas for grid connection with respect
to the potential offshore development areas identified in Section 3.5.1 have been considered to confirm whether cable
landings at Lamma Power Station or Siu Sai Wan are good options or
if other alternatives exist.
It is considered that the connection to
For potential development areas in eastern waters
(Sites 2 - 8), cable landing in many areas is constrained by the presence of
Country Parks, gazetted artificial reefs and Secondary Recreation Contact Zones
etc. Given the sensitivities within
An advantage with the Siu Sai Wan option over Fat Tong Kok
is that it avoids recreation areas, including Secondary Recreation Zones, a
golf course with associated amenities and recreational tracks. The area also consists of a large amount of
developed land.
A desk-top assessment has been undertaken for Siu Sai Wan to identify any major
obstacles for development here. A review
of aerial photography shows that about 50% of the total land area where a cable
could be landed at Siu Sai
Wan is highly developed with residential buildings, schools etc, while shrubland is the dominant habitat covering the headlands
and hillsides in the undeveloped area.
There are also some plantations around the housing estates. Exposed rocky shore is the predominant shore
type habitat. It is
expected that species present on the shore will be common, widespread species
and typical of exposed rocky shores in
It is noted that Siu Sai Wan is a highly developed with residential buildings,
schools, public facilities such as the Cargo Handling Basin, the Public Fill
Barging Point and the Island East Transfer Station. The cable landing is not expected to impact
on these facilities and this can be confirmed during the detailed design phase
of the Project.
3.7
Phase 2 - Review of Offshore Potential Development
Areas
3.7.1
Introduction
The eight sites identified in Phase 1 were further
assessed in a qualitative integrated manner whereby the environmental aspects
of each of the sites were considered in detail.
Following these environmental factors, physical and planning aspects are
also considered. The assessment has
included a review of potential issue for development at each of the sites
related to the siting of a wind farm and also the subtidal cable route.
The assessment considered both advantages and disadvantages of each
site, which led to the identification of the preferred site. The assessment largely considered those
points of the potential development areas that are nearest to receptors to
present a worst case scenario approach.
3.7.2
Assessment
Aspects
In order to provide a consistent approach to the site
assessment a list of environmental and planning, marine navigation and physical
aspects have been used to assess sites.
Furthermore constraints maps were developed to show
the location of absolute constraints and potential obstacles to development at
a more local scale to each of the potential development areas. These maps were used to inform more detailed
comparative assessments.
The understanding of impacts associated with an
offshore wind farm development and their potential significance is an important
task when determining risks of development.
There are a number of generic impacts associated with the development of
an offshore wind farm, regardless of its location. These issues need careful consideration, consultation
and agreement when developing an offshore wind farm and require assessment as
part of an EIA.
Key potential impacts are presented under each of the
assessment aspects to help guide the identification of issues within each of
the potential development areas. It is
also important to understand how impacts can be managed and mitigated to fully
determine the potential implications of development. In many instances the preferred form of
mitigation is to avoid impacts and it is noted that the EIAO TM presents guidelines that reflect this. Avoiding potentially significant issues is an
inherent part of the site selection screening process and is reflected in this
study by the identification of Absolute Constraints to development.
Where avoidance is not possible, the effective
adoption of other types of mitigation could mean that even where potential
issues exist, they do not present an obstacle to development. The issues considered are presented below in Table 3.3.
Table 3.3 Assessment
Aspects and Related Issues
|
Assessment Aspect |
Issues (relevant EIAO TM Reference) |
|
Environmental
and Planning |
|
|
Landscape and
Visual |
Impacts to
Landscape Resources, Landscape Characters Areas and Visual Sensitive Receivers
(Annexes 10 & 18) |
|
Heritage |
Impacts to
sites of Cultural Heritage, specifically marine archaeological resources
(Annexes 10 & 19) |
|
Marine
Recreation & Amenity |
Impacts to
Recreational Sites and Amenity |
|
Geoconservation |
Impacts on the |
|
Seabed
Sediments |
Impacts on
Water Quality, Ecology and Fisheries (Annexes 6, 8, 9, 14, 16 & 17) |
|
Water quality |
Impacts on
Water quality (Annexes 6 & 14) |
|
Noise |
Impacts on Humans
and Ecology (Annexes 5, 8, 13 & 16) |
|
Nature
Conservation |
Impacts on
Ecology (Annexes 8 & 16) |
|
Fisheries |
Impacts to
Fishing Operations and Fisheries Resources
(Annexes 9 & 17) |
|
Physical and Technical |
|
|
Water Depth |
Impacts on Ecology
related to footprint impacts (Annexes 8 & 16) |
|
Aviation |
Interactions
with Key Aviation Routes, specifically those of helicopters |
|
Submarine
cables and pipelines |
Impacts of
disturbance on Ecology, Fisheries and potential for Water Quality impacts
(Annexes 8, 9, 16, 6, 14 & 17) |
|
Shipping and
Navigation |
Impacts to
Navigation Routes and Vessel Usage |
|
Timeframe for
Construction |
Magnitude of
impacts on all themes |
|
Long-term
maintenance requirements |
Magnitude of impacts
on all themes |
Environmental & Planning
Landscape
and Visual
Development of an offshore wind farm could alter the
Landscape at the potential development area (i.e. the characteristics of the
offshore zone) during construction, operation and decommissioning. The construction, operation and
decommissioning of the wind farm site could also have a visual impact from land
and sea on sensitive visual receptors.
A desktop assessment has been undertaken to examine
the potential landscape and visual impacts associated with the development of a
wind farm for each of the potential development areas. The methodology adopted is generally in
accordance with Annexes 10 and 18 in the Hong Kong SAR Government's Technical Memorandum on the Environmental
Impact Assessment Process (EIAO-TM)
under the EIA Ordinance (Cap. 499,
S16), entitled "Criteria for Evaluating Visual and Landscape Impact"
and "Guidelines for Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment",
respectively and the EIAO Guidance Note No. 8/2002 “Preparation of Landscape and Visual Impact
Assessment under the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance.”
For the purposes of the assessment, it is assumed
that the footprint for the offshore wind farm will be the same for all of the
sites. A consistent envelope of wind
farm location has also been used, which does not take turbine array design into
account at this stage.
In order to gain a preliminary insight into the
significance thresholds of potential impacts, a preliminary assessment has been
undertaken to determine the size of the viewshed. The size of the viewshed
has been applied through GIS to determine the areas of potential visual
impact. The assessment of visual impacts
has considered typical parameters of human vision to compare the extent to
which the development would intrude into the central field of vision (both
horizontally and vertically). This has
then been used to determine the potential impact of the development on the
visual environment.
Heritage
Given that the wind farm will be located offshore
this report focuses on marine heritage/archaeology. Land based heritage aspects will be
considered for potential impacts related to the landing site once a location is
confirmed.
Construction of foundations for the wind turbines and
associated cable laying work could lead to the disturbance of known and unknown
marine archaeological resources within the footprint of the works.
Existing data available for marine archaeological
resources in
Marine
Recreation and Amenity
The construction, operation and decommissioning of an
offshore wind farm could have impacts on recreation, such as sailing, particularly
where there is potential contact with inshore areas used for recreation. It is possible that an offshore wind farm
could act as a tourist attraction site during operation. However, these issues are generic to the
development of a wind farm development at any of the sites and are not
considered further as part of the comparative assessment.
The assessment has instead considered proximity of
potential development areas to key areas of recreation, including
Geoconservation Areas
Section 3.4.3 has presented information on the Hong
Kong National Geopark which is located in the Northeastern and Eastern waters of
Seabed
Sediments
Construction works have the potential to lead to the
redistribution, suspension and deposition of contaminants (if present) and fine
material. This could have adverse
impacts on water quality and nature conservation if uncontrolled. The assessment has considered the relevant
sediment data available from Environmental Protection Department Monitoring
Stations ([19]) to determine if there are potential
contamination issues at any of the sites.
Water
Quality
As discussed, sediments could be released in
suspension during construction with potential effect on water quality. Impacts could include increased turbidity
and/or pollutants in solution. The
assessment has considered water quality measurements at relevant EPD water
quality monitoring stations ([1]).
This assessment has only considered those issues that are of most
relevance to the development of an offshore wind farm. Consequently, suspended sediment levels and
dissolved oxygen are therefore the main parameters considered at this stage.
Noise
The construction of the wind farm has the potential
to generate noise which will be temporary and limited to the construction phase. The main noise concern is typically during
operation of the wind farm.
Consequently, siting the wind farm away from
urban and residential area could be considered a benefit.
The noise assessment has therefore only considered
potential disturbance to developed areas where human receptors are
present. Proximity to these areas has
been calculated by measuring the distance from the nearest area of development
to the nearest boundary of each potential development area. However, each of the potential development
areas identified are relatively large and impacts are likely to reduce in areas
further offshore.
Nature
Conservation
The Phase 1 assessment has taken into account some of
the more sensitive marine habitats in Hong Kong, such as
Construction and decommissioning works for the wind
farm can lead to habitat disturbance in subtidal
areas within the footprint of the works.
In addition, the suspension and redistribution of fine sediments could
lead to adverse impacts on water quality with direct impacts on ecology, e.g.
those species sensitive to changes in light penetration or release of contaminants. Construction will create underwater sound,
which could affect sensitive marine species, including marine mammals. Other construction activities, e.g. movement
of vessels, could also cause general disturbance to marine species in the area.
It is acknowledged that some bird species are
potentially more sensitive to impacts from wind farms through collision risk
and disturbance to, and loss of, roosting/feeding/breeding grounds. These issues are looked at further for the
selected sites.
An overview of the ecology of the potential
development areas was undertaken to identify potential issues. This included an assessment of marine ecology
within and adjacent to the sites.
Fisheries
The construction, operation and decommissioning of an
offshore wind farm could potentially have an impact on fisheries, including the
disturbance to fishing grounds and the exclusion of certain fishing operations
within and around the wind farm.
Fisheries data were examined for each site in order
to determine the status of the fisheries resources/operations in and around
their coastal waters. It is not expected
that fish culture operations will be affected by the wind farm as Fish Culture
Zones were regarded as absolute constraints in the Phase 1 assessment and hence
impacts have been avoided from the outset.
Physical & Technical
Water
Depth
Water depth provides a potential constraint to the
type of foundations used (as discussed in Section
3.3.3). Water depth issues were,
therefore, considered as part of the site assessment.
Aviation
The Phase 1 assessment has considered as absolute
constraints height restrictions associated with aircraft movements in
Aside from physical impacts, wind farms could also
impact upon aircraft radar. Work
overseas has shown that turbine signals are similar to aircraft and it is
therefore difficult to differentiate these (false reading impacts)([20]).
This when not managed carefully could cause a problem for flight
operations. In addition, turbines can be
highly reflective, which can affect the performance of radar systems (masking
impacts). The site comparative
assessment has therefore considered the potential effect of a wind farm in each
of the potential development areas on key aviation routes.
Submarine
Cables and Pipelines
The construction of an offshore wind farm could
result in disturbance and damage to existing cables/pipelines, which could lead
to higher impacts on the environment related to reinstatement. Crossing agreements typically need to be
reached between parties and the preparation of such arrangements can take time
and introduce some schedule risks. Areas
with fewer crossings would be considered preferential.
The assessment has therefore considered the presence
of submarine cables and pipelines within potential development areas.
Shipping
and Navigation
The construction, operation and decommissioning of an
offshore wind farm could potentially effect shipping routes and also has the
potential to alter collision risk.
The assessment considered the potential effect of a
wind farm in each of the potential development areas on shipping and navigation
routes. The marine traffic assessment
considered the following:
·
Proximity
of Potential Development Areas to marine infrastructure;
·
Importance
of marine traffic routes and traffic type/volume;
·
Vessel
type;
·
Areas
of buffer around important navigation features; and
·
Routes
for the shipment of Dangerous Goods.
For the analysis of marine activity the
following four vessel classes were considered:
·
Ocean-going
vessels – international trading ships and coastal vessels with length (LOA) in
excess of 75 m;
·
Rivertrade vessels – locally trading coastal vessels with LOA
in excess of 50m;
·
Tug
and Tow – tug and barge/derrick lighter combinations adopted locally for the
transfer of containerised and bulk cargo;
·
Fast
launches and ferries – small craft (10-50 m LOA) travelling at high speed
(>15 knots); and
·
Small
craft and fishing vessels.
For each of the above criteria, principal and
secondary routes were identified. Where
principal routes have been identified a buffer zone of 800 m has again been
applied (in relation to UK Maritime and Coastguard Authority guidance) to
determine the area in which a wind farm may not be preferred.
Timeframe
for Construction
The timeframe for completion of construction works is
affected by a number of factors, including the distance that is required to be
travelled to the construction site, complexity and scale of the tasks. For example, it is proposed that the lay down
area for all works will be at Lamma Power Station and
that mobilisation will occur from the Power Station Quay. Therefore construction time will increase at
sites further away from the Power Station.
In addition, the timeframe for installation of the submarine cable
connection to the wind farm will increase at greater distances from the HK
Electric grid network. Increased
construction time has the potential to lead to higher magnitude impacts during
the construction period on receptors through prolonged exposure to pollutant
sources or disturbance to key habitats.
In addition, larger transport distances will reduce the sustainability
of the project with respect to fuel usage and air emissions.
Long-term
Maintenance Requirements
Wind farms require maintenance throughout their
operational lifetime. The complexity for
maintenance increases in more offshore locations. In addition, the magnitude of impacts on
receptors, particularly related to the transport of vessels to site, increases
in the more offshore location. As per
the construction phase, larger transport distances will affect the sustainability
of the project.
Distance to Connect to HK Electric Grid
Offshore
Cable
Shorter offshore submarine cabling would result in a
reduced length of seabed disturbance and associated marine ecological,
fisheries and water quality impacts.
Onshore
Cable
Similarly to the offshore cable, a shorter onshore
cable to connect to the HK Electric Grid would provide for a reduction in
potential land-use disturbance (i.e. road closure for underground connection)
and associated noise, air and terrestrial ecological impacts.
Substation
At present HK Electric has not finalised plans for
the substation that will transform the electricity to 132 kV. The substation may be sited onshore at the
landing point of the submarine cable circuit or offshore. An offshore substation would require piling
works for construction as depicted in Figure
5.4 and assessment of impacts to the marine and landscape visual
environment would need to be considered.
The construction of an onshore substation will require consideration of
surrounding environmental issues such as impacts to noise dust and terrestrial
ecology. Operational issues such as
landscape visual impacts would need to be considered for both options.
3.8.1
Site
1:
This potential development area is
approximately 33 km2, located between
Table 3.4 Southwest
Lamma Summary Site Review
|
Key Issues |
|
Environmental and Planning |
|
Landscape & Visual |
|
· Located across areas of both ‘Offshore
Waters Landscapes’ and ‘Inshore Waters Landscape’. |
|
· Potential sensitivity of visual impacts
to residential areas, including Cheung Chau, Hei Ling Chau, Lantau, and Lamma. |
|
· Potential sensitivity of visual impacts
to recreational areas, including walking trails on Lamma
Island, Cheung Chau and Lantau
Island; lookouts such as the Peak on Hong Kong Island; and visitors to Shek Kwu Chau
and recreational marine traffic. |
|
· Other man made features are present
within this area, such as the Lamma Power Station
transient marine traffic. |
|
|
|
Heritage |
|
· From the data reviewed there are no
known shipwreck sites within the development area boundary. |
|
|
|
Marine Recreation and Amenity |
|
· Secondary Contact Recreation Zones are
located around |
|
· The northern part of the site is located
in proximity to gazetted bathing beaches on the west coast of |
|
|
|
Geoconservation |
|
· This site is remote from the Hong Kong
National Geopark. |
|
|
|
Seabed Sediments |
|
· Generally homogenous, comprising of soft
sand and muds with a high fraction of fines ([1]).
According to Marine Water Quality in |
|
|
|
Water Quality |
|
· Environmental Protection Department
(EPD) monitoring ([1])
data suggest local monitoring sites complied with Water Quality Objectives (WQOs) for most parameters measured with the exception of
Total Inorganic Nitrogen. |
|
|
|
Noise |
|
· The nearest developed area to the site
is 1.71 km away at Lamma Power Station. Yung Shue Wan ( |
|
|
|
Nature Conservation |
|
· There are very low sightings of
Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins (Sousa chinensis) in the potential development area. The southwestern
tip of |
|
· Presence of a green turtle (Chelonia mydas) nesting ground at |
|
· The waters along the southern coast of |
|
· The soft subtidal
sediments in the potential development areas support a range of benthic
communities. Communities are dominated
by polychaetes ([23]) ([24])
([25]). |
|
· Hard coral communities of conservation
value are mainly located to the east, south and southwest of |
|
· A total of 23 seabird species have been
recorded, in southern waters, accounting for 8,750 individuals ([26]).
Key species recorded were Red-necked Phalaropes Phalaropus
lobatus, White-winged Black Tern (Chlidonias leucoptera),
Black-naped Tern (Sterna sumatrana), Black-naped
Tern (Sterna sumatrana) and Aleutian Tern (Sterna
aleutica). The three summer breeding tern species recorded
(ie Black-napped Tern, Roseate Tern and Bridled
Tern), regular monitoring programme and the breeding tern surveys in 2003 has
revealed that breeding colonies were mainly found on islands in northeastern and eastern waters such as Shek Ngau Chau,
Ninepin Group and Waglan Island ([27]).
|
|
|
|
Fisheries |
|
· No Fish Culture Zones would be affected
by construction and operation of a wind farm in the development area. |
|
· Recent marine traffic information for the
site has determined that greatest fishing activity occurs to the east of the
development area ([29]). |
|
· The number of fishing vessel operations
ranged from 100 – 400 vessels to 400 - 700 vessels within the development
area, with greatest activity to the southwest of Lamma
Island, including a part of the site ([30]).
Fishing operations in this area are dominated by shrimp and hang
trawlers. The fishing areas at the
wind farm site are of medium-high commercial value. |
|
|
|
Physical & Technical |
|
Water Depth |
|
· The site is mostly located in water
depths of less than 20m. However, to
the south of the site water depths are between 20 and 30m. |
|
|
|
Aviation |
|
· IFR helicopter flight routes lie within the
site, however, expected changes to the flight procedures currently undergoing
review by the Civil Aviation Department will remove any conflicts with
aviation routes once the procedures are finalised to the satisfaction of CAD.
|
|
|
|
Submarine Cables and
Pipelines |
|
· Two submarine cables and a pipeline are
located in the site. |
|
|
|
Shipping and Navigation |
|
· A principal lane for fast launches and
ferries is located to the east and north of the site. The buffer zones for these lanes impinge on
the site. The southern part of the
site is a secondary route for rivertrade vessels
and fast launches/ferries. The
northern area of the site is subject to small craft and fishing boat
activity, which are also considered to be secondary issues. The majority of the site is considered to
be viable with respect to navigation. |
|
|
|
Timeframe for Construction |
|
· The site is located approximately 4km
from the Lamma Power Station, which means there is
only a relatively short distance to the proposed laydown
area and quay. Construction times should therefore be relatively low for this
site. In addition, the need for relatively short transportation distances
will have relatively low associated impacts. |
|
|
|
Long-term Maintenance
Requirements |
|
· As per the discussion of the timeframe
for construction above, this site provides relatively short transport
distances during the maintenance period, which means that long term impacts
associated with marine transport are relatively low. |
|
|
|
Distance to Connect to HK
Electric Grid |
|
· The site would require a relatively
short length of submarine cable installation ~ 4km to the landing point. · No onshore works would be required in
public areas to connect to the HK Electric Grid. |
|
|
|
Substation |
|
· The site is located around 4km away from
the cable landing point, making it technically feasible for considering both
onshore or offshore substation options.
Impacts from the onshore options should minimal as land within the
power station in available. |
3.8.2
Site
2:
This potential development area is
approximately 35 km2, located to the east of Po Toi
islands. Figures 3.19 and 3.20 show the potential environmental, planning and
physical issues within and adjacent to this site. Figure 3.18 shows water depth at the site. The key site issues are summarised in Table
3.5.
Table 3.5 East
|
Key Issues |
|
Environmental and Planning
|
|
Landscape
& Visual |
|
· Located within the Landscape Character
Type ‘Offshore Waters Landscape.’ · Sensitivity of visual impacts to
residential areas (such as those of Hong Kong Island South and |
|
|
|
Heritage |
|
· From the data reviewed there are no
known shipwrecks within the site. |
|
|
|
Marine Recreation and
Amenity |
|
· There are no recreational sites in
proximity. |
|
|
|
Geoconservation |
|
· The Hong Kong National Geopark is located to the north of the site and the
closest Geo-Area is the Ninepins (approx 7km). |
|
|
|
Seabed Sediments |
|
· Generally consistent with sediments
elsewhere in eastern waters comprising of soft sand and muds
with a very high fraction of fines and are not contaminated. |
|
|
|
Water Quality |
|
· Environmental Protection Department
(EPD) monitoring data suggest local monitoring sites complied with
Water Quality Objectives (WQOs) for all parameters
measured. |
|
|
|
Noise |
|
· The nearest developed area to the site
is >7km away at Po Toi island. |
|
|
|
Nature Conservation |
|
· Presence of the finless porpoise in nearshore waters around the islands and immediately to
the west. The · The soft subtidal
sediments in the potential development areas support a range of benthic
communities ([31]). · Bird species are though to be similar to
that identified for Site 1 ([32]).
Again, no information is available on flight heights and paths within
or near to the development area, which are considered to be the most
important consideration for assessing impacts on birds. · Hard coral communities of high
ecological value are located around the Po Toi
islands west of the site. |
|
|
|
Fisheries · A fish culture zone is located to the
south east of Po Toi Island. Greatest fishing activity occurs to the
west of the site in proximity to the Po Toi island
complex. Within the site activity is
greatest to the northwest with between 50-100 operations recorded ([33]).
Trawlers (ie Stern, Pair and Shrimp) are the
main vessel recorded here. |
|
|
|
Physical
& Technical |
|
Water
Depth |
|
· Water depths are variable across the
site. The central western area shows
lowest depths (less than 20m) and the seabed descends away from this area to
depths of between 30 and 40m to the western and eastern edges of the site. |
|
|
|
Aviation |
|
· There are no known aviation issues at the
sites aside from GFS operations (eg air quality
monitoring). |
|
|
|
Submarine
Cables and Pipelines |
|
· Five submarine cables and a pipeline run
across the site. |
|
|
|
Shipping
and Navigation |
|
· A Marine Vessel Fairway is located to the
north of the site. In addition, much
of the site is considered to be a principal lane for ocean-going vessels and
the cruise terminal operators. A secondary route for these vessels is also
located in the north eastern area of the site. Much of the site is also a secondary route
for river trade vessels. Only a small
area to the north east of the site is considered to be viable in terms of
freedom from navigational constraints. |
|
|
|
Timeframe
for Construction |
|
· The site is located approximately 28km
from the Lamma Power Station, which means there is
only a relatively long distance to the proposed laydown
area and quay. Construction times
should therefore be relatively high for this site. In addition, the need for relatively long
transportation distances will have greater associated impacts. |
|
|
|
Long-term
Maintenance Requirements |
|
· Relatively long transport distances from
the Lamma Power Station to the site for maintenance
access. |
|
|
|
Distance
to Connect to HK Electric Grid |
|
· The site would have a cable length of
approximately 12.5 km from its nearest point to the grid network located at Siu Sai Wan. · An additional 2 km of onshore cables
would require to be buried to connect to the nearest HK Electric Grid
connection at Chai Wan. |
|
|
|
Substation |
|
· Siting a substation onshore will not be
technically feasible for this site due to the long distance from shore. An offshore substation will be required
which will add to marine environmental impacts. |
3.8.3
Site
3: South Ninepins
This potential development area is
approximately 50 km2, located to the south of
Table 3.6 South
Ninepins Summary Site Review
|
Key Issues |
|
Environmental and Planning
|
|
Landscape & Visual |
|
· Located within the Landscape Character
Type ‘Offshore Waters Landscape’. · Sensitivity of visual impacts to
residential areas (such as those of · Sensitivity of visual impacts to users
of the Hong Kong Geopark. |
|
|
|
Heritage |
|
· From the data reviewed there is one
known shipwreck located within the site. |
|
|
|
Marine Recreation and Amenity |
|
· There are no recreational sites in the
vicinity. |
|
|
|
Geoconservation |
|
· The Hong Kong National Geopark is adjacent to the site and the closest Geo-Area
is the Ninepins (< 1km). |
|
|
|
Seabed Sediments |
|
· There are no EPD monitoring stations
situated within the site. However, it
is anticipated that sediments are consistent with elsewhere in eastern waters
comprising of soft sand and muds with a very high
fraction of fines ([34]).
It is expected that contaminant levels would be similar to other sites
in eastern waters with levels generally below LCEL. |
|
|
|
Water Quality |
|
· There are no EPD monitoring stations situated
within the site. However, it is
anticipated that water quality is consistent with that found elsewhere in
eastern waters i.e. good water quality is recorded. |
|
|
|
Noise |
|
· The nearest residential development to
the site is 5.4km away at |
|
|
|
Nature Conservation |
|
· Presence of the finless porpoise in all
seasons. However, there have been very few sightings ([35]). · The · High
valued corals were also found in Victor Rock and One Foot Rock which are
close to the development area in Site 3. · Sea turtles have also been recorded in
the area possibly migrating to foraging sites elsewhere ([36]).
It is not clear, however, how these turtles use other parts of eastern
waters and it is possible for turtles to migrate across other sites. A green turtle was recorded nesting on · The soft subtidal
sediments in the potential development areas support a range of benthic
communities. |
|
· A gazetted artificial reef site is
located approximately 4.5km north west of the site. · As part of the EIA Study for another
proposed wind farm development project in the eastern waters in Hong Kong,
focussed surveys were conducted from May 2006 to August 2006, from December
2006 to May 2007, and August 2007 to December 2007 ([37]).
The surveyed area was located approximately 3 km northeast from the
Site 3. A total of 57 bird species and
six unidentified species were recorded over 59 survey days. Nine species were considered to be of
relatively higher sensitivity due to their conservation significance,
distribution and/ or abundance within their Study Area, including |
|
Fisheries · Greatest fishing activity occurs to the
west of the site in proximity to the Ninepin island complex. Within the site activity is greatest to the
west with generally between 100-400 operations recorded, although a small
area where between 400-700 were also recorded ([40]).
Most fishing vessel types are represented in the area, but the main
vessel types that are recorded are Shrimp, Pair and Stern trawlers. |
|
Physical & Technical |
|
Water Depth |
|
· Water depths range from less than 20m in
the south west to 30-40m in the east. |
|
|
|
Aviation |
|
· There are no known aviation issues at
the sites aside from GFS operations (eg air quality
monitoring). |
|
|
|
Submarine Cables and Pipelines |
|
· Five submarine cables run across the
site, particularly to the south and east. |
|
|
|
Shipping and Navigation |
|
· A Marine Vessel Fairway is immediately to
the west of the site. Part of the site
(mid to south west) is a principal lane for ocean-going vessels, rivertrade vessels (north east) and (fast launches and
ferries). Connected secondary routes
are also present in the site. The
northern area of the site is subject to small craft and fishing boat
activity, which are also considered to be secondary issues. In addition, the site is in proximity to
the Ninepins Open Sea Disposal Ground, with marine traffic moving to and from
the site. The eastern area of the site
is considered to be possibly viable with respect to navigation issues. |
|
Timeframe for Construction |
|
· The site is located approximately 28km
from the Lamma Power Station, which means there is
only a relatively long distance to the proposed laydown
area and quay. Construction times
should therefore be relatively high for this site. In addition, the need for relatively long
transportation distances will have greater associated impacts. |
|
|
|
Long-term Maintenance Requirements |
|
· Relatively long transport distances from
the Lamma Power Station to the site for maintenance
access. |
|
|
|
Distance to Connect to HK Electric Grid |
|
· The site would have a cable length of
approximately 9.5 km from its nearest point to the grid network located at Siu Sai Wan. · An additional 2 km of onshore cables
would require to be buried to connect to the nearest HK Electric Grid
connection at Chai Wan. |
|
|
|
Substation |
|
· Siting a substation onshore will not be
technically feasible for this site due to the long distance from shore. An offshore substation will be required
which will add to marine environmental impacts. |
3.8.4
Site 4:
This potential development area is
approximately 49km2 located to the east of Basalt and
Table 3.7 East
Basalt and
|
Key Issues |
|
|
Environmental and Planning
|
|
|
Landscape & Visual |
|
|
· Located within the Landscape Character
Type ‘Offshore Waters Landscape.’ · Sensitivity of visual impacts to remote
areas on the eastern side of · Sensitivity of visual impacts to users
of the Hong Kong Geopark. |
|
|
|
|
|
Heritage |
|
|
· From the data reviewed there are three
shipwrecks located to the south of the site. |
|
|
|
|
|
Marine Recreation and Amenity |
|
|
· Secondary Contact Recreation Zones are
immediately to west of the site around the eastern coastline of · Land to the northwest and west of the
site is designated as a |
|
|
|
|
|
Geoconservation |
|
|
· The Hong Kong National Geopark lies within the western boundary of this site
(the Sai Kung Volcanic Rock Region). The Ung Kong
Group and the High Island Geo-Areas are adjacent to the site. |
|
|
|
|
|
Seabed Sediments |
|
|
· Seabed sediments are thought to be
generally comprised of fine sands and muds. However, sand deposits are known to be
located to the south east of the site.
Sediment chemistry is consistent with that found at other sites in
eastern waters and uncontaminated (below LECL) ([41]). |
|
|
|
|
|
Water Quality |
|
|
· Water quality is consistent with that
found elsewhere in eastern waters i.e. good water quality is recorded. |
|
|
|
|
|
Noise |
|
|
· The nearest developed area to the site
is 2.41 km away at |
|
|
|
|
|
Nature Conservation |
|
|
· Presence of the finless porpoise in all
seasons. However, there have been very
few sightings ([42]). · Sea turtles have also been recorded in
the area possibly migrating to foraging sites elsewhere ([43]).
It is not clear, however, how these turtles use other parts of eastern
waters and it is possible for turtles to migrate across other sites. · · The soft subtidal
sediments in the potential development areas support a range of benthic
communities and amphioxus has been reported in a study for AFCD. · Bird species are though to be similar to
that identified for Site 3 ([44]).
Terns are thought to breed on Wong Nai Chau, which is located to the west of the site. · A gazetted artificial reef site is
located adjacent to the south western boundary of the site. |
|
|
|
|
|
Fisheries |
|
|
· Greatest fishing activity occurs to the
south of the site in proximity to the Ninepin island complex and in the near
shore areas to the west of the site.
Within the site activity is greatest to the west with between 50-100
operations recorded, although a small area of between 400-700 vessels
recorded also lies within the site ([45]).
Most fishing vessel types are represented in the area, but the main
vessel type that has been recorded is Stern trawlers. |
|
|
|
|
|
Physical & Technical |
|
|
Water Depth |
|
|
· Water depths range from less than 20 m
in the central area of the site, increasing to 20-30m in surrounding areas. |
|
|
Aviation |
|
|
· There are no known aviation issues at
the sites aside from GFS operations (eg air quality
monitoring). |
|
|
Submarine Cables and
Pipelines |
|
|
· There are no cables or pipelines that
cross the site. |
|
|
|
|
|
Shipping and Navigation |
|
|
· A principal lane for rivertrade
vessels, tug/tow vessels and fast launches and ferries runs along the western
flank of the site. A secondary route
for fast launches and ferries links to the principal route and runs from the
middle of the site to the north east.
The western area of the site is also subject to small craft and
fishing boat activity. A relatively
large area of the site is considered to be viable with respect to navigation. |
|
|
|
|
|
Timeframe for Construction |
|
|
· The site is located approximately 33 km
from the Lamma Power Station, which means there is
only a relatively long distance to the proposed laydown
area and quay. Construction times
should therefore be relatively high for this site. In addition, the need for relatively long
transportation distances will have greater associated impacts. |
|
|
|
|
|
Long-term Maintenance
Requirements |
|
|
· Relatively long transport distances from
the Lamma Power Station to the site for maintenance
access. |
|
|
|
|
|
Distance to Connect to HK
Electric Grid |
|
|
· The site would have a cable length of approximately
8.7km from its nearest point to the grid network located at Siu Sai Wan. · An additional 2 km of onshore cables
would require to be buried to connect to the nearest HK Electric Grid
connection at Chai Wan. |
|
|
|
|
|
Substation |
|
|
· Siting a substation onshore will not be
technically feasible for this site due to the long distance from shore. An offshore substation will be required
which will add to marine environmental impacts. |
|
3.8.5
Site
5: Eastern Offshore
This potential development area is
approximately 164km2, located to the far east of
Table 3.8 Eastern
Offshore Summary Site Review
|
Key Issues |
|
Environmental and Planning |
|
Landscape & Visual |
|
· Located within the Landscape Character
Type ‘Offshore Waters Landscape.’ · Sensitivity of visual impacts to remote
areas on the eastern side of · Sensitivity of visual impacts to users
of the Hong Kong Geopark. |
|
|
|
Heritage |
|
· From the data reviewed two shipwrecks
are located in the north and south of the site. |
|
|
|
Marine Recreation and Amenity |
|
· There are no recreational sites in
proximity to the site. |
|
|
|
Geoconservation |
|
· The Hong Kong National Geopark lies to approximately 6km west of this site (the Sai Kung Volcanic Rock Region). |
|
Seabed Sediments |
|
· Consistent with sediments elsewhere in
eastern waters comprising of soft sand and muds
with a very high fraction of fines and are not contaminated ([46]). |
|
|
|
Water Quality |
|
· Water quality is consistent with that
found elsewhere in eastern waters i.e. good water quality is recorded. |
|
|
|
Noise |
|
· The nearest developed area to the site
is 7.89km away at |
|
|
|
Nature Conservation |
|
· Presence of the finless porpoise. However, there have been very few sightings
here to date ([47]). |
|
· The soft subtidal
sediments in the potential development areas support a range of benthic
communities dominated by polychaetes ([48])
([49]) ([50]). · Bird species are though to be similar to
that identified for Site 3 ([51]).
|
|
|
|
Fisheries |
|
· No Fish Culture Zones would be affected
by construction and operation of a wind farm in the development area. · Fishery activity is very low to the
north and south of the site. There is
greater activity in the central and western areas with 50-100 operations
recorded and a small area of between 100-400 vessel activity ([52]).
The main vessel types that have been recorded are Shrimp and Stern
trawlers as well as Gill Net fishing. · The fishing areas at the wind farm site
are of low commercial value. |
|
Physical and Technical |
|
Water Depth |
|
· Water depths range from less than 20 m
to the north of site. Water depth
gradually increases further south, with depths of greater than 40m across the
whole south eastern area of the site. |
|
|
|
Aviation |
|
·
There
are no known aviation issues at the sites aside from GFS operations (eg air quality monitoring). · There is an
area marked on charts as VHD11. This
area is classified by CAD as a Danger Area for aircraft related
to Marine Police firing activity. The area is titled by CAD as the |
|
Submarine Cables and
Pipelines |
|
· 8 submarine cables run across the
southern part of the site. A pipeline
runs along the eastern boundary of the site. |
|
Shipping and Navigation |
|
· A principal lane for ocean-going vessels
is located to the south of the site. Secondary
routes for these ocean-going and rivertrade vessels
are also located in the southern area of the site. For rivertrade
vessels and fast launches and ferries there are also secondary routes in the
central area of the site. A large
proportion of the site is viable for development with respect to navigation. |
|
Timeframe for Construction |
|
· The site is located approximately 36 km
from the Lamma Power Station, which means there is
only a relatively long distance to the proposed laydown
area and quay. Construction times
should therefore be relatively high for this site. In addition, the need for relatively long
transportation distances will have greater associated impacts. |
|
Long-term Maintenance
Requirements |
|
· Relatively long transport distances from
the Lamma Power Station to the site for maintenance
access. |
|
Distance to Connect to HK
Electric Grid |
|
· The site would have a cable length of
approximately 18.5 km from its nearest point to the grid network located at Siu Sai Wan. · An additional 2 km of onshore cables
would require to be buried to connect to the nearest HK Electric Grid
connection at Chai Wan. |
|
|
|
Substation |
|
· Siting a substation onshore will not be technically
feasible for this site due to the long distance from shore. An offshore substation will be required
which will add to marine environmental impacts. |
3.8.6
Site
6: East Tai Long Wan
This potential development area is
approximately 91km2, located east of Tai Long Wan. Figures 3.27 and 3.28 show the potential environmental, planning and
physical issues within and adjacent to this site. Figure 3.18 shows water depth at the site. The key site issues are summarised in Table
3.9.
Table 3.9 East
Tai Long Wan Summary Site Review
|
Key Issues |
|
Environmental and Planning
|
|
· Landscape
& Visual |
|
· Located within the Landscape Character Type
‘Offshore Waters Landscape.’ · Sensitivity of visual impacts to remote
areas on the eastern side of · Sensitivity of visual impacts to users
of the Hong Kong Geopark. |
|
|
|
Heritage |
|
· From the data reviewed there are no
known shipwrecks located in the site. |
|
|
|
Marine Recreation and
Amenity |
|
· Secondary Contact Recreation Zones are
immediately to west of the site around the eastern coastline of · Land to the west of the site is
designated as a |
|
Geoconservation |
|
· The Hong Kong National Geopark lies at the western boundary of this site (the Sai Kung Volcanic Rock Region). The High Island Group Geo-Area is adjacent
to the site. |
|
|
|
Seabed Sediments |
|
· Seabed sediments are generally comprised
of fine sands and muds. However, sand deposits are known to be
located to the north of the site.
Sediment chemistry is consistent with that found at other sites in
eastern waters. Sediments are,
therefore, uncontaminated ([53]). |
|
|
|
Water Quality · Water quality is consistent with that
found elsewhere in eastern waters i.e. good water quality is recorded |
|
Noise |
|
· The nearest developed area is 2.85 km
away at Long Ke. |
|
|
|
Nature Conservation · Presence of the finless porpoise. However, there have been very few sightings
here to date ([54]). · Hard coral communities of high
ecological value are located within the south west area of the site and to
the north of the site. · The soft subtidal
sediments in the potential development areas support a range of benthic
communities. According
to previous studies and surveys, high density of amphioxus was reported in
water areas near Tai Long Wan. · Shek Ngau Chau is considered the main breeding site for the terns
in |
|
|
|
Fisheries |
|
· Greatest fishing activity occurs in the western
area of the site and in the near shore areas to the west of the site where
100-400 operations have been recorded ([56]).
Most fishing vessel types are represented in the area, but the main
vessel type that has been recorded are trawlers (Stern, Pair and Shrimp). |
|
|
|
Physical and Technical |
|
Water Depth |
|
· Water depths range from less than 20 m
in the central/south eastern areas of the site. In other areas water depth increases to
20-30 m. |
|
Aviation |
|
· There are no known aviation issues at the
sites aside from GFS operations (eg air quality
monitoring). |
|
Submarine Cables and
Pipelines |
|
· A pipeline runs from south to the north
across the eastern area of the site. |
|
|
|
Shipping and Navigation |
|
· A principal lane for ocean-going vessels
is located to the east of the site.
Secondary routes for these ocean-going vessels are also located in the
eastern area of the site. A principal
lane for rivertrade vessels, tug/tow vessels and
fast launches and ferries runs along the western flank of the site. The area to the west of the site is a key
activity area for small craft and fishing boats. A secondary route for fast launches and
ferries is located in the south east corner of the site. A large proportion of the central area of
the site is considered viable for the development of an offshore wind farm. |
|
|
|
Timeframe for Construction |
|
· The site is located approximately 46 km
from the Lamma Power Station, which means there is
a relatively long distance to the proposed laydown
area and quay. Construction times
should, therefore, be comparatively lengthy for this site. In addition, the need for relatively long
transportation distances will have greater associated impacts. |
|
|
|
Long-term Maintenance
Requirements |
|
· Relatively long transport distances from
the Lamma Power Station to the site for maintenance
access. |
|
|
|
Distance to Connect to HK
Electric Grid |
|
· The site would have a cable length of
approximately 17.5 km from its nearest point to the grid network located at Siu Sai Wan. · An additional 2 km of onshore cables
would require to be buried to connect to the nearest HK Electric Grid
connection at Chai Wan. |
|
|
|
Substation |
|
· Siting a substation onshore will not be
technically feasible for this site due to the long distance from shore. An offshore substation will be required
which will add to marine environmental impacts. |
3.8.7
Site
7: East Tap Mun
This potential development area is approximately
49km2, located to the far north east of
Table 3.10 East
Tap Mun Summary Site Review
|
Key Issues |
|
Environmental and Planning
|
|
Landscape & Visual |
|
· Located within the Landscape Character Type
(LCT) ‘Offshore Waters Landscape.’ · Sensitivity of visual impacts to remote
areas on the eastern side of · Sensitivity of visual impacts to users
of the Hong Kong Geopark. |
|
|
|
Heritage |
|
· From the data reviewed there are no known
shipwrecks located in the site. |
|
|
|
Marine Recreation and Amenity |
|
· Secondary Contact Recreation Zones are
immediately to west of the site around the eastern coastline of · Land to the west of the site is
designated as a |
|
|
|
Geoconservation |
|
· The Hong Kong National Geopark lies within the northern boundary of this site
(the Northeast New Territories Sedimentary Rock Region). The Port Island-Bluff Head Geo-Area is
adjacent to the site (< 1km west). |
|
|
|
Seabed Sediments |
|
· Seabed sediments are generally comprised
of fine sands and muds. However, sand deposits are known to be
located to the south east of the site.
Sediment chemistry is consistent with that found at other sites in
offshore waters and are therefore uncontaminated ([57]). |
|
|
|
Water Quality |
|
· Water quality is consistent with that
found elsewhere in eastern waters i.e. good water quality is recorded. |
|
|
|
Noise |
|
· The nearest developed area to the boundary
of the development area is 0.5 km away at Ko Lau
Wan. |
|
|
|
Nature Conservation |
|
· · Presence of the finless porpoise. However, there have been very few sightings
here to date ([58]). · Hard coral communities of high
ecological value are located immediately adjacent to the site to the north,
west and south. · The soft subtidal
sediments in the potential development areas support a range of benthic
communities. |
|
· Shek Ngau Chau is considered the main breeding site for the terns
in |
|
|
|
Fisheries |
|
· Greatest fishing activity occurs in the
western area of the site and in the near shore areas to the west of the site
where 400-700 operations have been recorded around · Fish culture zones are located to the
west of the site. |
|
|
|
Physical and Technical |
|
Water Depth |
|
· Water depths range from less than 20 m
to the east to between 20-30 m in the west. |
|
Aviation |
|
· There are no known aviation issues at
the sites aside from GFS operations (eg air quality
monitoring). |
|
Submarine Cables and
Pipelines |
|
· A pipeline runs from south to the north
across the eastern area of the site. |
|
Shipping and Navigation |
|
· A principal lane for ocean-going vessels
is located in the eastern area of the site, including the approach for LNG
carriers to the Guangdong LNG terminal.
A principal lane for rivertrade vessels,
tug/tow vessels and fast launches and ferries runs along the western flank of
the site. The area to the west of the
site is a key activity area for small craft and fishing boats. Secondary routes for fast launches and
ferries are located in the northern part of the site. Only a very small area in the centre of the
site is considered viable for the development of an offshore wind farm. |
|
|
|
Timeframe for Construction |
|
· The site is located approximately 58km from
the Lamma Power Station, which means there is a
relatively long distance to the proposed laydown
area and quay. Construction times
should therefore be very high for this site.
In addition, the need for relatively long transportation distances
will have greater associated impacts. |
|
|
|
Long-term Maintenance
Requirements |
|
· Relatively long transport distances from
the Lamma Power Station to the site for maintenance
access. |
|
|
|
Distance to Connect to HK
Electric Grid |
|
· The site would have a cable length of
approximately 24 km from its nearest point to the grid network located at Siu Sai Wan. · An additional 2 km of onshore cables
would require to be buried to connect to the nearest HK Electric Grid
connection at Chai Wan. |
|
|
|
Substation |
|
· Siting a substation onshore will not be
technically feasible for this site due to the long distance from shore. An offshore substation will be required
which will add to marine environmental impacts. |
3.8.8
Site
8: Kat O – Yantian
This potential development area is
approximately 14km2, located to far north east of
Table 3.11 Kat
O - Yantian Summary Site Review
|
Key Issues |
|
Environmental and Planning
|
|
Landscape & Visual |
|
· Located within the Landscape Character
Type (LCT) ‘Offshore Waters Landscape.’ · Sensitivity of visual impacts to remote
areas on the eastern side of Hong Kong and Visually Sensitive Receptors in
Mainland · Sensitivity of visual impacts to users
of the Hong Kong Geopark. |
|
|
|
Heritage |
|
· From the data reviewed there are no
known shipwrecks located in the site. |
|
|
|
Marine Recreation and Amenity |
|
· Secondary Contact Recreation Zones are immediately
to west of the site around the eastern coastline of · Land to the west of the site is
designated as a |
|
|
|
Geoconservation |
|
· The site is entirely within the Hong Kong
National Geopark (the Northeast New Territories
Sedimentary Rock Region). The Double
Haven and Port Island-Bluff Head Geo-Area are within a few hundred metres of
the site. |
|
|
|
Seabed Sediments |
|
· Seabed sediments are generally comprised
of fine sands and muds. Sediment chemistry is consistent with that
found at other sites in eastern waters and are therefore uncontaminated ([61]) |
|
|
|
Water Quality · Water quality is consistent with that
found elsewhere in eastern waters i.e. good water quality is recorded. |
|
|
|
Noise |
|
· The nearest developed area to the site
is 3.29 km away at Kat O. |
|
|
|
|
|
Nature Conservation |
|
· · Hard coral communities of high
ecological value are located immediately adjacent to the site to the west and
south. · The soft subtidal
sediments in the potential development areas support a range of benthic
communities. However, communities are
generally less diverse than at other sites. · The breeding tern surveys in 2003 has
revealed that breeding colonies were mainly found on islands in northeastern and eastern waters such as Shek Ngau Chau,
Ninepin Group and Waglan Island ([62]).
|
|
|
|
Fisheries · Fish culture zones are located to the
west of the site. Greatest fishing
activity occurs in the western area of the site where 100-400 operations have
been recorded ([64]).
Most fishing vessel types are represented in the area, but the main
vessel type that has been recorded are Trawlers (Stern, Pair and Shrimp). |
|
Physical and Technical |
|
Water Depth |
|
· Water depths range from less than 20 m to
the north to 20 - 30 m in the south east. |
|
Aviation |
|
· There are no known aviation issues at
the sites aside from GFS operations (eg air quality
monitoring). |
|
Submarine Cables and Pipelines |
|
· A pipeline runs across the south eastern
area of the site. |
|
Shipping and Navigation |
|
· Marine vessel fairways are located
directly adjacent to the site.
Principal lanes for ocean-going vessels, rivertrade
vessels, tug and tow vessels and fast launches and ferries also run through
the site. Secondary routes for these
ocean-going vessels are also located in the eastern area of the site. The area to the west of the site is a key
activity area for small craft and fishing boats. When buffer zones are taken into account,
none of this site is considered viable for development with respect to
navigation. |
|
Timeframe for Construction |
|
· The site is located approximately 67 km
from the Lamma Power Station, which means there is
a relatively long distance to the proposed laydown
area and quay. Construction times
should therefore be very high for this site.
In addition, the need for relatively long transportation distances
will have greater associated impacts. |
|
Long-term Maintenance Requirements |
|
· Relatively long transport distances from
the Lamma Power Station to the site for maintenance
access. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Distance to Connect to HK Electric Grid |
|
· The site would have a cable length of
approximately 29 km from its nearest point to the grid network located at Siu Sai Wan. · An additional 2 km of onshore cables
would require to be buried to connect to the nearest HK Electric Grid
connection at Chai Wan. |
|
Substation |
|
· Siting a substation onshore will not be
technically feasible for this site due to the long distance from shore. An offshore substation will be required
which will add to marine environmental impacts. |
|
|
3.9
Comparative Assessment of Sites
The following provides a comparative assessment of
the information contained in Section 3.7
above. The purpose of this assessment is
to identify potential benefits and disbenefits of
each site when compared with another to identify which site(s) is/are preferred. The assessment has been conducted in
compliance with Clause 2.1(iii) of
the Study Brief.
3.9.1
Environmental
& Planning
Landscape and Visual
Landscape Impacts
The Landscape Value Mapping of Hong Kong identifies
Sites 2-8 as being within the Landscape Character Type (LCT) ‘Offshore Waters
Landscape.’ This LCT is defined by large
expanses of water that extend to the open sea.
Sites 2-8 abut more remote land areas of
These landscapes are generally characterised as being
large, open and expansive, with passing marine traffic, anchorages and offshore
marine recreation. The sites within this
LCA experience a relatively high degree of ‘remoteness’, and are typical of
offshore waters landscapes found in
Site 1 is located across areas of both ‘Offshore
Waters Landscapes’ and ‘Inshore Waters Landscape’. ‘Inshore Waters Landscape’ are generally more
intimate and characterised by bays, inlets and islands with frequently passing
marine traffic. This site also has a
number of man-made elements in the vicinity such as the Lamma
Power Station and the overall proximity to
Visual Impacts
A preliminary viewshed
analysis has been undertaken to attempt to determine the potential impact of
the offshore wind farm when developed.
These operational impacts are likely to be of greatest concern and
therefore form the basis of the visual impact assessment. The visual impact of a development has been
quantified by reference to the degree of influence on a person’s field of
vision – in particular the horizontal and vertical fields of view. This data provides a basis for assessing and interpreting the impact of a development by
comparing the extent to which the development would intrude into the central
field of vision (both horizontally and vertically).
Table 3.12 shows the significance of a wind farm
development for both fields of view.
Table 3.12 Viewshed and Degrees of Influence
|
Impact |
Distance from an Observer to the
Wind Turbine |
|
Insignificant A
thin line in the landscape, both horizontally and vertically. |
>15.5
km |
|
Potentially
noticeable The degree of
visual intrusion will depend on the wind turbine’s ability to blend in with
the surroundings. |
3.0
– 15.5 km |
|
Visually
evident Usually visible, however the degree of
visual intrusion will depend on the degree to which the wind turbine will
blend into the landscape. |
< 3 km |
A GIS viewshed analysis has
identified those areas that can potentially be visually impacted by the wind
turbine. Such analysis is based on
topography only, and shows those areas that would be screened by intervening
hills etc. It does not take into
account intervening vegetation or buildings, nor does it take into account
small variations in topography, such as road cuttings. Therefore it is a conservative assessment of
those areas that may be potentially able to view the wind turbine. Figures 3.33 – 3.40
show the viewsheds for indicative areas that cover
each of the potential development areas.
Table 3.13 below shows the land based viewing areas and marine
based viewing areas that may be affected by each of the potential development
areas.
Table 3.13 Potential
Viewshed of Land and Marine Based VSRs
|
Site |
<3.0
km |
3.0
- 15.5 km |
||
|
Land Area |
Marine Area |
Land Area |
Marine Area |
|
|
1 |
0.49 km2 |
42 km2 |
35 km2 |
273 km2 |
|
2 |
0.05 km2 |
62.5 km2 |
19.4 km2 |
389 km2 |
|
3 |
0.32 km2 |
67.3 km2 |
28.9 km2 |
490 km2 |
|
4 |
3.64 km2 |
66 km2 |
44 km2 |
456 km2 |
|
5 |
0.0 km2 |
64.6 km2 |
16.4 km2 |
454 km2 |
|
6 |
0.23 km2 |
64.4 km2 |
22 km2 |
332 km2 |
|
7 |
1.3 km2 |
65.2 km2 |
30.3 km2 |
222 km2 |
|
8 |
2.8 km2 |
55 km2 |
52.3 km2 |
180.2 km2 |
Table 3.13 importantly shows what areas (in square
kilometres) within the two zones as outlined in Table 3.12 above that will be affected (both land and marine
areas).
Generally, land areas contain a higher concentration of
VSRs particularly permanent residents and
recreational hikers. These VSRs may have a high sensitivity to change and are more
likely to experience a higher significance threshold.
Table 3.13 shows that Sites 5 will not affect any
land based VSRs within the 3 km viewshed
and site 2 will only affect a very small area.
Alternatively, Sites 8 and 4 will potentially affect the largest area of
land based VSRs in this zone. Table
3.13 also shows that Site 8 followed by 4 may affect the greatest area of
land based VSRs, with Sites 5 and 2 affecting the
smallest area of land based VSRs.
A more detailed analysis is required to determine the
locations of specific VSRs for each of the potential
development areas. There are a number of
different types of VSRs that may be affected by the
wind farm, with varying sensitivities that will affect the significance
threshold of any visual impact. This
desktop study has shown the locations 8 and 4 may potentially affect a greater
area of land based viewers within the 3 km zone. Similarly Sites 8 and 4 may affect the
largest area of land based VSRs within the 3 – 15.5
km zone, which is less significant.
The viewshed of Sites 1, 2
and 3 include residential VSRs which may have a high
sensitivity to change. However, in Site
1 the viewshed contains many ‘man made’ elements
therefore the wind farm may be more visually compatible, therefore reducing
this impact.
Although sites 3, 5, 6, 7 and 8 are more remote and
will affect less numbers of residential VSRs, it is
noted that they can be expected to have an effect on users of the now
designated Hong Kong National Geopark. The boundaries of Sites 3, 4, 6, 7 and 8
overlap in differing degrees with the Geopark and
hence visual impacts are expected to be the most sensitive. Site 5 is directly adjacent to the Sai Kung Volcanic Region of the Geopark
and hence it is expected that visual impacts of the wind farm would be of
concern to many of the users of the Geopark. In addition, areas within the 15.5 km viewshed cater for recreational hikers and are commonly
used by recreational marine craft. These
VSRs may have a high sensitivity to change. These sites are also relatively natural in
appearance, which may result in a lower level of compatibility with views onto
a wind farm, thereby resulting in higher significance thresholds of visual
impact than residential areas.
When viewshed figures are
combined with sensitivity, visual impacts on residential areas would be
greatest at Site 8, followed by site 4 as they have the largest land area in
the higher level of visual significance and are in sensitive areas. Site 1
would be considered to have the most acceptable visual impacts as the viewshed to this site contains many ‘man made’ elements
therefore the wind farm may be more visually compatible, thus reducing the
severity of the impact. It must be
noted that this assessment is very preliminary and does not consider
‘perception’, which is an essential component of visual impact assessment for
developments of this nature.
Heritage
Review of literature ([65]) indicates that there are only four known
shipwrecks in total in the potential development areas located in Sites 3, 4,
and 5. However, no significant impacts
should be anticipated as these wrecks are isolated and should be easily avoided
through appropriate layout design supported possible by appropriate
archaeological surveys prior to construction and/or mitigated through ‘watching
briefs’ during construction. No sites are therefore identified as being
preferential with respect to known marine archaeology.
Marine Recreation and Amenity
Sites 2, 3 and 5 are the only sites that are not
located in proximity to Secondary Recreation Zones. However, where sites lie adjacent to these
zones, development further offshore within site boundaries should reduce
potential conflicts with near shore recreational use. Site 1 is the only site that is in any
proximity to Gazetted Bathing Beaches.
It is possible that development could occur at a
reasonable distance from areas of recreational amenity at all sites. In addition, the appropriate timing of
construction works, e.g. to avoid main recreation periods, could help to
minimise effects at any sites where conflicts may occur.
It is however noted that the eastern waters and those
of Sai Kung are often used for marine recreational
activities such as sailing. It is
expected that any proposal for development within these sites could be expected
to attract adverse comment from concerned parties and may lead to
insurmountable objections depending on the location of the development. No
sites are thus preferred with regard to Marine Recreation and Amenity.
Geoconservation
The information presented in Section 3.7 has indicated that three of the development areas lay
partly or wholly within the Hong Kong National Geopark
and are particularly close to one or more Geo-Areas. Site 8 lies wholly within the Northeast New
Territories Sedimentary Rock Region and is within a short distance (< 0.5
km) of the Port Island-Bluff Head and Double Haven Geo-Area. Part of Site 7 is within the Geopark boundary and also in close proximity to the Port
Island-Bluff Head Geo-Area. Part of Site
4 is also within the Geopark boundary and is in close
proximity to the High Island Geo-Area and the Ung
Kong Group Geo-Area. Sites 2, 3, 5 and 6
are adjacent to the High Island Geo-Area and Ninepin Group Geo-Area
respectively. The only site that is
remote from the Geopark is Site 1.
It is expected that any proposal for development
within Sites 8, 7, 4 and to an extent 2, 3, 5 and 6 could be expected to
attract adverse comment from concerned parties and may lead to insurmountable
objections depending on the location of the development. It is noted that the Environmental Permit for
the Hong Kong Offshore Wind Farm (HKOWF) (EP-341/2009)
which is located adjacent to Sites 4, 5 and 3 contains a specific clause:
“2.4 The Permit Holder shall submit to the
Director for approval, at least six month before the commencement of construction
of the Project, three hard copies and one electronic copy of the final layout
of the wind farm turbines with demonstrations that the final layout, among the
possible alternative layouts, has minimized the footprint of the project and maximized
the distance of the turbines from Ninepin Group and Ung
Kong Group.”
It is clear from the above clause that there is
concern from the Government that an appropriate distance should be maintained
between the Geo-Areas and the footprint of the wind farm. The HKOWF is located approximately 9 km and 5
km east of the
Consequently for the Geoconservation assessment Site 8 and Site 4 could be
considered as having an Insurmountable Constraint, Sites 3, 6 and 7 could be
considered to have potentially insurmountable concerns with regard to proximity
to Geo-Areas and the Hong Kong National Geopark. Site 1 would be considered as Preferred from
this viewpoint.
Seabed Sediments
The available data indicate that the seabed sediments
of the sites are very similar. The
presence of fine material provides potential for contaminants. However, EPD monitoring suggests that levels
are generally below LCEL, with the exception of Silver (at all sites) and
Arsenic (at Sites 1 and 5). However,
these Arsenic levels appear to be infrequent breaches.
Water Quality
The water quality parameters considered at the
potential development sites are relatively stable and very similar,
particularly the sites in eastern waters.
No sites are therefore identified
as being preferential with respect to water quality.
Noise
Sites 2 and 5 are further distance away from
developed areas and there is least potential for disturbance at theses sites
during construction. However, these
impacts will be relatively short term as there will only be an issue if piling
of foundations is taken forward. It is
not expected that there would be operational noise impacts at the majority of
the sites, with the exception of possibly Site 7 and 8, which are 500 m and 2
km respectively away from the nearest developed area. Construction noise impacts can be mitigated
through timing of works and given that long term operational noise impacts are
potentially of greatest concern Sites 7 and 8 could be seen as least preferred.
Sites 7 and 8 are considered to have potentially insurmountable
constraints due to the potential effects of operational noise. However, there is opportunity to develop in
further offshore in areas where operational impacts would be reduced.
Nature Conservation
Marine Mammals
A total of 16 (and possibly up to 18) species of
marine mammals, or cetaceans, have been recorded in
Indo-Pacific Humpback Dolphin
Studies on the distribution, abundance, habitat use,
and life history of humpback dolphins within
Densities of humpback dolphins in
Humpback dolphins exhibit a seasonal shifting in
abundance and density and thus a seasonal variation of abundance in different
locations. The variation is thought to
be due to the increased input of freshwater from the discharge of the Pearl
River Estuary and the subsequent movements of estuarine prey species ([72]) ([73])
([74]).
No sightings are recorded at site 2 - 8. However,
some sightings have been recorded at
Finless Porpoise
In contrast to humpback dolphins, studies on the finless porpoise indicate that the majority of
sightings in the long-term dataset have been recorded in the southern and
eastern waters of
The recent studies on marine mammals in
The main issue associated with an offshore wind farm
development on finless porpoise is associated with underwater sound effects
during construction, particularly during any percussive piling works. Underwater sound impacts can include primary
effects (fatality), secondary effects (injury or deafness) or tertiary effects
(avoidance). However, appropriate
mitigation can be adopted to reduce sound levels and thereby minimise or remove
effects ([79]).
Based on historical sightings, it would appear that
finless porpoise are known to be present within all sites, with the possible
exception of Site 8. It is noted,
however, that comparatively more sightings are recorded within Sites 1, 2 and
3. Given that sightings are most
prevalent in Site 1, 2 and 3 it can be expected that these sites may require
more detailed investigation on mitigation measures to maintain construction
phase impacts to within acceptable levels.
Sea Turtles
The only site that is near to a green turtle nesting
ground is Site 1, where a nesting area is located to the south west of
Subtidal
Benthic Fauna
Due to the long distances between Site 2-8 with their
nearest point to the HK Electric grid network located at Siu
Sai Wan, the potential for disturbance to subtidal habitats through cable installation is expected to
be greatest compared with that for Site 1 where the cable landing point is
located at Lamma Power Station in the vicinity of
this Site. It is also noted that recent
studies have reported Amphioxus (Branchiostoma belcherii), which is of conservation interest, at some
of the sites in the eastern waters, in particular at Tai Long Wan and the
waters offshore of Port Shelter.
Nevertheless, through the application of appropriate mitigation impacts
can be controlled.
Corals
Hard coral communities are located adjacent to
boundaries and potential cable installation routes for all sites. However, that the greatest diversity and
abundances of hard corals are generally found in the north eastern waters due
to the optimal environmental conditions for settlement, growth and survival
found in these waters, hence, Sites 7 and 8 are therefore of possibly greatest
sensitivity ([82]).
High valued corals were also found in Victor Rock and One Foot Rock
which are close to the development area in Site 3.
Birds
It has been documented that approximately 38 species
of seabirds have been recorded in
A total of 8,750 individuals in 23 of these recorded
seabird species were recorded during the migratory spring season (March to May)
in 2006 in southern and south-eastern Hong Kong waters, including Lamma Island (Table
3.14) ([85]).
Red-necked Phalaropes Phalaropus lobatus were the largest group of seabirds observed
during the survey (~75% of total numbers).
Other key species recorded included White-winged Tern Chlidonias
leucoptera,
Black-naped Tern Sterna sumatrana,
Aleutian Tern Sterna aleutica and Greater Crested Tern Strena bergii.
Spatial variation in bird sightings record was also found in which more
terns occurred in the southern waters (i.e. area between Po Toi
and Lamma Island), while more Red-necked Phalaropes
occurred in the south-eastern waters (i.e. area near the Ninepins).
As part of the EIA Study for another proposed wind
farm development project in the eastern waters in Hong Kong, focussed surveys
were conducted from May 2006 to August 2006, from December 2006 to May 2007,
and August 2007 to December 2007 ([86]). A
total of 57 bird species and six unidentified species were recorded over 59
survey days. Nine species were
considered to be of relatively higher sensitivity due to their conservation
significance, distribution and/ or abundance within their Study Area, including
The
breeding bird survey conducted by Hong Kong Bird Watch Society (HKBWS) have
recorded three breeding bird species within
Table 3.14 Total
Number of Seabirds Recorded during HKBWS Surveys (Total of 22 surveys days
during March to May 2006) and its Percentage Contribution ([88])
|
Seabirds |
Number (% of Total) |
|
Family
Scolopacidae (Sandpipers) |
|
|
Red-necked
Phalarope Phalaropus lobatus |
6,618 (75.63) |
|
Sub-total |
6,618 (75.63) |
|
Family
Sternidae (Terns) |
|
|
Whiskered
Tern Chlidonias hybridus |
6 (0.07) |
|
White-winged
Tern Chlidonias leucopterus |
754 (8.61) |
|
Aleutian
Tern Sterna aleutica |
200 (2.28) |
|
Bridled
Tern Sterna anaethetus |
55 (0.63) |
|
Gull-billed
Tern Sterna nilotica |
5 (0.06) |
|
Caspian
Tern Sterna caspia |
4 (0.05) |
|
Common
Tern Sterna hirundo |
212 (2.42) |
|
Roseate
Tern Sterna dougallii |
2 (0.02) |
|
Black-naped Tern Sterna sumatrana |
258 (2.95) |
|
Sooty
Tern Sterna fuscata |
1 (0.01) |
|
Little
Tern Sterna albifrons |
1 (0.01) |
|
Greater
Crested Tern Sterna bergii |
10 (0.11) |
|
Unidentified
Tern Chlidonias sp. / Sterna sp. |
219 (2.50) |
|
Sub-total |
1,727 (19.73) |
|
Family
Laridae (Gulls) |
|
|
Yellow-legged
Gull Larus cachinnans |
2 (0.02) |
|
Black-tailed
Gull Larus crassirostris |
2 (0.02) |
|
Heuglin’s Gull Larus
heuglini |
158 (1.81) |
|
Slaty-backed Gull Larus
schistisagus |
1 (0.01) |
|
Unidentified
Gull Larus sp. |
8 (0.09) |
|
Sub-total |
171 (1.95) |
|
Family
Stercorariidae (Jaegers and Skua) |
|
|
Long-tailed
Jaeger Stercorarius longicaudus |
113 (1.29) |
|
Parasitic Jaeger Stercorarius parasiticus |
13 (0.15) |
|
Pomarine Jaeger/Skua Stercorarius pomarinus |
17 (0.19) |
|
Unidentified
Jaeger Stercorarius sp. |
18 (0.21) |
|
Sub-total |
161 (1.84) |
|
Family
Procellariidae (Shearwaters) |
|
|
Streaked
Shearwater Calonectris leucomelas |
52 (0.59) |
|
Short-tailed
Shearwater Puffinus tenuirostris |
15 (0.17) |
|
Unidentified
Shearwater Puffinus sp. |
3 (0.03) |
|
Sub-total |
70 (0.80) |
|
Family
Alcidae (Auks) |
|
|
Ancient Murrelet Synthliboramphus antiquus |
3 (0.03) |
|
Sub-total |
3 (0.03) |
|
Grand Total |
8,750 (100) |
Table 3.15 Breeding
Tern Species Recorded in Hong Kong by Carey et al (2001) ([89])
|
Common Name |
Species Name |
HK Status |
Protection Status ([90]) |
|
Gulls
& Terns |
|||
|
Roseate Tern |
Sterna dougallii |
SV |
· Uncommon but
localised in |
|
Black-naped Tern |
Sterna sumatrana |
SV |
· Common in |
|
Bridled Tern |
Sterna anaethetus |
SV |
· Uncommon but
localised in |
For the three summer breeding tern species
recorded (ie
Black-napped Tern, Roseate Tern and Bridled Tern), regular monitoring programme
and the breeding tern surveys in 2003 has revealed that breeding colonies were
mainly found on islands in northeastern and eastern
waters such as Shek Ngau Chau, Ninepin Group and Waglan
Island ([91]).
WBSEs
are also known to have nesting colonies in
It is also noted that recent information
available by the Hong Kong Bird Watching Society suggest that the Dangan Islands off the south coast of Hong Kong may affect
the passage of seabirds migrating coastally ([95]) . These islands are considered to concentrate
bird movements as they depart through a single channel between the Po Toi Island and
Unfortunately, there is little site specific data on
migratory flight paths, flight heights and foraging areas for individual
species, which are key aspects when determining the potential impact of an
offshore wind farm. In addition, the
monitoring of impacts of offshore wind farm developments elsewhere is species
specific and it is therefore difficult to translate results to
Fisheries
All sites are located in areas of fishing activity,
typically primarily comprising of trawling activities and mainly Stern, Pair
and Shrimp trawling. In terms of fishing
operations, greater fishing activities appear to occur within the waters of and
around Site 1 –
3.9.2
Physical
Water Depth
Water depths in most sites range from 20-40m and are
generally shallower than 40m with the exception of the southeast corner of Site
5. Deepest water out of all of the sites
also generally occurs within parts of Site 5.
All sites show variable water depth and each area has opportunity for
development within depths of less than 20m.
All sites therefore provided potential for the use of either monopile or tripod foundations. No sites are therefore preferred with respect to water depth.
Aviation
On the basis of new flight procedures, undergoing the
approval process by the Civil Aviation Department, no sites are considered to
have aviation issues related to either Visual Flight Rules (VFR) or Instrument
Flight Rules (IFR) navigation. No sites are therefore identified as being
preferential at this stage with respect to aviation.
Submarine cables and pipelines
All sites with the exception of Site 4 have either
cable or pipelines within their boundary.
Sites 2, 3 and parts of 5 have a particularly large number of
cables. However, Sites 5 has sufficient
room to avoid significant disturbance to these features. Sites
2 and 3 are therefore the only sites that are not preferred for development
with respect to cables and pipelines.
Shipping and Navigation
As discussed in Section 3.6.2, a marine traffic analysis has been undertaken to
help identify constraints within potential development areas. A summary of the results is provided below:
Ocean-going
vessels
The key activity in this area is
characterised (north-east to south-west) as set out below.
·
Principal
routes:
o
Direct
access to Yantian and LNG terminal through site 7 and
eastern boundary of Site 6;
o
Cruise
liner arrivals and departures to the south-east of
o
Cargo
vessel activity within East Lamma Channel.
·
Secondary
routes:
o
Yantian to Kwai Chung vessel
transits; and
o
Coastal
routes accessing HK Port through Sites 3 & 5.
Rivertrade vessels
Principal routes include rivertrade feeder service from Yantian
to
Tug
and Tow
Vessel activity is focussed on a
concentrated feeder route from Yantian to
Fast
launches and ferries
The key activity in this area is
characterised (north-east to south-west) as set out below.
·
Principal
routes:
o
Linking
service from Yantian to
o
Recreational
routes to/from Sai Kung; and
o
Small
craft activity around Lamma & south of
·
Secondary
routes are:
o
East
– west links within north
o
Coastal
links, east-west through Site 3, 4 & 5.
Small
craft and fishing vessels.
Small craft and fishing activity is
identified throughout the Study Area.
The principal focus of this activity is adjacent to the coastline and
within the island groups.
Summary
The marine traffic analysis has identified
Site 8 as being entirely unviable with respect to navigation. The majority of Sites 2 and 7 are also
considered to be unviable and it is considered that there would be insufficient
space to develop in the less constrained areas of these sites. All of the other sites have potential for
development. Sites 4, 5 and 6 have the
greatest area available with least constraint.
Sites 1 and 3 also have a sufficient area for development outside of
principal routes and associated buffer zones. However, with respect to Site 1,
there remains to be significant boating activity across the northern of the
site for small craft and fishing boats, which could be of concern for
development. However, an area of very
low activity for these vessels is still available for development to south of
the site. It is considered that
avoidance of these boating areas should be prioritised for any development in
Site 1. It is, therefore, considered
that overall, Sites 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6 are
preferential for development in areas that are not constrained by principal
routes and associated buffer zones. Sites 2, 7 and 8 are not viable for
development with respect to navigational constraints.
Timeframe for Construction
Site 1 would have the
shortest distance to the laydown area and quay and is
preferred. The shorter distance would result in reduced
disturbance to marine ecological, fisheries and possible water quality
impacts. Sites 6, 7 and 8 would pose potentially prohibitive transport distances
during construction.
Long-term Maintenance
Requirements
Site 1 would have the shortest transport distance
during the maintenance period. As for
construction, the shorter distance would result in reduced disturbance to
marine ecological, fisheries and possible water quality impacts. Sites 6, 7 and 8 would pose potentially
prohibitive transport distances during operation ([97]).
Distance to Connect to HK
Electric Grid
Offshore Cable
The shorter cable would result in a reduced length of
seabed disturbance and associated spatial and temporal marine ecological,
fisheries and water quality impacts.
Sites 6, 7 and 8 would result in the disturbance of over 40 km of seabed
(in the case of Site 8).
Onshore Cable
As with offshore cables, a shorter onshore cable
would have the potential to reduce impacts to public disturbance as well as
associated noise, air and terrestrial ecology impacts. All sites, with the exception of Site 1,
would require at least 2 km of onshore cable to be installed along existing
road networks to connect to the HK Electric Grid on
Substation
It is noted that Site 1 is the only site that has
flexibility with regard to adopting either an onshore or offshore
substation. For Sites 2 through 8 they
are too remote from the shore for an onshore substation to be technically
viable. Consequently, an offshore
substation, with its associated marine and landscape visual impacts, must be
adopted.
Based on the above for
Offshore Cable, Onshore Cable and Substation, Site 1 is therefore preferred
with respect to Distance to Connect to HK Electric Grid.
3.9.3
Summary
Review of the Comparative Assessment
The sites were evaluated against environmental and
planning, and physical criteria using a "+"/"-"
system ([98]).
The categorisation system applies either positive (“+”) or negative
signs (“-“) to reflect the degree of suitability/preference of the alternative,
in terms of the relevant criteria, for siting the
offshore wind farm. The categories were
as follows:
(++) indicates the site is highly suitable, does
not have any apparent drawbacks and is preferred over the other sites
(+) indicates the site is suitable although some
minor drawbacks may be encountered
(0) indicates the site is suitable but has some
drawbacks. The drawbacks maybe overcome
by incorporating typical industry engineering, design or management features
(-) indicates the site is somewhat unsuitable
since special engineering, design or management features would be required yet
would not guarantee the success of the site
(- -) indicates the site is unsuitable since the
cost and/or practicality of the special engineering, design or management
features required to overcome drawbacks would likely be prohibitive or
unacceptable
Each of the sites was assigned a category based on
the information presented in Sections 3.8
and 3.9. Table
3.16 presents a summary of the categories for the environmental and
planning criteria.
Table 3.16 Summary
Table of Site Review Findings – Environmental & Planning
|
Criteria |
Site |
|||||||
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
|
|
Environmental and Planning |
||||||||
|
Landscape
& Visual |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Landscape |
++ |
+ |
+ |
0 |
+ |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Visual |
+ |
+ |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Heritage |
+ |
+ |
0 |
0 |
0 |
+ |
+ |
+ |
|
Marine
Recreation and Amenity |
0 |
+ |
+ |
0 |
+ |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Geoconservation |
++ |
+ |
- |
- - |
0 |
- |
- |
- - |
|
Seabed
Sediments |
0 |
+ |
+ |
+ |
0 |
+ |
+ |
+ |
|
Water
Quality |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
|
Noise |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
- |
- |
|
Nature
Conservation |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Marine Mammals |
0 |
0 |
0 |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
|
Sea Turtles |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
|
Subtidal Benthic Habitat |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
|
Corals |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
0 |
0 |
|
Birds |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
|
Fisheries |
0 |
++ |
++ |
++ |
++ |
+ |
0 |
0 |
In order to identify sites with a view to avoiding or
minimising the potential environmental impacts to ecological sensitive
receivers and other sensitive uses, sites which have been identified as having
insurmountable constraints have been removed from the assessment (Table 3.16). As far as the Environmental and Planning Criteria
are concerned this leads to the removal of Sites 4, and 8. The key reasons for this are presented below:
·
Site 4 – East of Basalt and Bluff Islands is removed as it was considered to have
insurmountable constraints related to Geoconservation,
due to its proximity to the Ung Kong Group and the
High Island Geo-Areas, which reduce the potential development area to a size
considered to be unviable for the Wind Farm development.
·
Site 8 – Kat O - Yantian is removed as the site has been
identified as entirely within the Hong Kong National Geopark
(Northeast new Territories Sedimentary Rock Region) and adjacent to the Port
Island-Bluff Head and Double Haven Geo-Areas.
The site has also been considered as potentially insurmountable with
regards to Noise due to the relative proximity of villages along the coastline.
Table 3.17 presents a summary of the categories for
physical criteria. As above each of the
remaining sites was assigned a category based on the information presented in Sections 3.8 and 3.9.
Table 3.17 Summary
Table of Site Review Findings – Physical
|
Criteria |
Site |
|||||
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
|
|
Water
Depth |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
|
Aviation |
0 |
+ |
+ |
0 |
+ |
+ |
|
Submarine
Cables and Pipelines |
++ |
0 |
0 |
++ |
++ |
++ |
|
Shipping
and Navigation |
++ |
- - |
+ |
+ |
+ |
- - |
|
Timeframe
for Construction |
++ |
+ |
+ |
0 |
- |
- |
|
Long-term
Maintenance Requirements |
++ |
+ |
+ |
0 |
- |
- |
|
Distance
to Connect to HK Electric Grid |
++ |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
As far as the Physical Criteria are concerned Sites 2
and 7 are considered to have insurmountable constraints and are removed from
further consideration as discussed further below.
·
Site 2 – East Po Toi is removed as it was considered to have insurmountable
constraints related to shipping and navigation which reduce the potential
development area to a size considered to be unviable for the Wind Farm
development.
·
Site 7 – East Tap Mun is also removed as it was considered to
have insurmountable constraints related to shipping and navigation which reduce
the potential development area to a size considered to be unviable for the Wind
Farm development. It is noted that the
site is also considered to be very remote which could have potentially insurmountable
constraints on construction activities as well as maintenance during operation
of the wind farm. The site has also been
considered as potentially insurmountable with regards to Geoconservation,
due to the proximity of the Hong Kong Geopark and to
Noise due to the relative proximity of villages along the coastline.
The next step in the site selection was to take
forward for further discussion sites that did not have potentially
insurmountable constraints. It was
considered that because these sites would require special engineering, design
or management features that would not guarantee the success of the site it
would be preferable to focus on site without this constraint. As a consequence of this Sites 3 and 6 were
removed from further consideration as discussed below.
·
Site 3 – South Ninepins is removed as the area that could be
developed within this site is highly constrained by the presence of the Ninepin
Group Geo-Area as well as shipping routes that traverse the site. A development within this site could be
expected to attract adverse comment from concerned parties which may lead to
insurmountable objections relating to Geoconservation
issues depending on the location of the development.
·
Site 6 – East Tai Long Wan is removed as the area that could be developed within
this site is constrained by the presence of the High Island Group Geo-Area as
well as shipping routes that traverse the site.
A development within this site could be expected to attract adverse
comment from concerned parties which may lead to insurmountable objections
relating to Geoconservation issues depending on the
location of the development. The site is
also considered to be very remote which could have potentially insurmountable
constraints on construction activities as well as maintenance during operation
of the wind farm.
From the analysis above, it can be seen that both
Site 1 and Site 5 are the only sites that do not have either Insurmountable or Potentially Insurmountable aspects with regard to their suitability
for development of the offshore wind farm.
In order to thus identify the preferred site for the proposed wind farm,
a further comparison of Site 1 and Site 5 has been conducted in the following
section.
As has been discussed in Section 3.6.1 Site 5 lies within an area
identified as the Marine Police Ninepins Range (marked as Area VHD-11 on Notice
to Airmen Charts), used for firing practices etc. The potential for the use of these waters for
such an activity would be considered incompatible with a wind farm. It is noted that for this reason the Hong
Kong Offshore Wind Farm EIA excluded the VHD-11 Area. If the VHD-11 Area was in active use it would
eliminate a large portion of the site.
There would still be sufficient area available for siting
the wind farm though it is noted that this would be in the deeper waters of
Site 5.
It should be noted therefore that the
feasibility of utilising Site 5 remains uncertain and cannot at the time of
this EIA be confirmed.
3.10
Comparison of
The assessment of alternative site locations for the
proposed wind farm has identified that Sites 1 and 5, Southwest Lamma and Eastern Offshore, respectively, are considered to
be the most suitable sites of those identified in
·
Benefit – A characteristic that may be considered as a
positive feature of the site, or may be considered as a feature that would not
be considered to cause adverse environmental impacts.
·
Disbenefit – A characteristic that may be considered
as a negative feature of the site, or may be considered as a feature that could
be considered as having the potential to lead to adverse residual environmental
concerns or impacts.
Based on this further comparison, the preferred site
is recommended for detailed Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). The detailed EIA will also focus on the
acceptability of the disbenefits of the preferred
site identified in Table 3.18.