Surveys start on Fylde farmland for potential Wind Farms

The proposed Morgan and Morecambe Offshore Wind Farms have recently started undertaking ground investigation and environmental surveys on large parts of Fylde farmland affecting many of our clients. The latest round of surveys have included more intrusive surveys which include bore holes, trial pits, trenches and soil samples. All these works are to facilitate a planning application which will be submitted later in the year for the project.

The Morgan and Morecambe Offshore wind farm project is for two proposed offshore wind farms being developed in the Irish Sea. The offshore wind farms will then connect to the national grid and are expected to make a key contribution to the UK’s target of generating 50GW of power from offshore wind by 2030. Combined they will have the potential to generate almost 2GW of electricity – enough to power the equivalent of around two million homes.

To achieve this, they will not only need to lay cables offshore, but Landfall works (where the offshore cables reach the shore) including underground cables, two new substations, temporary construction compounds, temporary and permanent access, and connections to the existing National Grid substation at Penwortham.

We are some way off the start of construction yet as the project has to pass various planning stages and importantly, be granted compulsory powers (Development Consent Order) by the Government. Our team of Surveyors are being kept very busy ensuring that clients are properly represented, their rights protected, and appropriate compensation paid for the access and damage to their land.

Our team are highly experienced in dealing with all types of requests to land by a variety of different authorities including water companies, electricity companies and gas companies.  There are a variety of reasons why a third party may need to access to your land, and different purposes fall under different Acts.  These give the Acquiring Authorities different powers, and it’s very easy to lose track of rights and permissions. If in doubt please contact us.