As much as 84% of local spatial development plans allowing the location of wind turbines may be dumped due to the change of the distance to 700 metres, an analysis by Urban Consulting demonstrates. Four provinces — Mazowieckie, Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Śląskie and Małopolskie — need to dump all prepared plans. This confirms that the changes are to unblock onshore wind only apparently. Without 500 metres the act is a white elephant, and the results of the analysis only confirm the harm caused by the proposed amendment.

By adopting the amendment changing the minimum distance between a wind turbine and development from 500 to 700 metres, the politicians decided to dump 84% of binding local plans. In certain provinces all plans need to be dumped. Instead of planning where it has already been planned, we will plan anew, in the vicinity, and this will take years, an analysis by Urban Consulting demonstrates.

The so-called Distance Act, adopted in 2016, rendered all local spatial development plans allowing for the location of wind turbines unusable. Unblocking at least part of the plans gives an opportunity to shorten the investment process by at least 2–3 years.

However, the extent to which projects will be unblocked depends on a single parameter — minimum distance between residential development and wind turbines. Metres are important here, for the majority of plans were prepared with respect to a minimum distance of 500 m, which prior to 2016 was not a law, but a good practice. However, it is not only the time that is crucial. Areas in question, subject to local plans allowing for the location of wind turbines, have been subject to environmental studies, lease contracts and social acceptance. No new residential development was planned there, because the areas were subject to restrictions implemented by the Distance Act, the analysis reads.

“Adoption of the amendment changing the minimum distance to wind turbines from 500 to 700 metres entails further blocking of onshore wind. Only the broadly consulted 500 m, accepted by the government and local governments, secured new wind megawatts within 2 years, with as much as 22 GW in subsequent years,” said Janusz Gajowiecki, President of the Polish Wind Energy Association.

 

Maintenance of the minimum distance of 700 metres will result in no more than 4 GW of new wind capacity built by 2030. On the other hand, implementation of the 500 m distance originally proposed by the government would allow for the construction of as much as more than 10 GW of new onshore wind capacity, resulting in doubling the Polish onshore capacity.