Will there be 7 or 5 wind turbines on the A28? On June 4, the Council of Provincial Executive (GS) Gelderland decided on the integration plan for the Horst en Telgt wind farm, an initiative of Energy Cooperative Veluwe-Energie and Prowind. At the last minute, GS decided to adjust the plan from 7 to 5. According to the initiators, the application fully meets the requirements for 7 turbines.
"It was with surprise and disappointment that we received the decision from the Provincial Executive. With two fewer wind turbines, the regional energy targets (RES) will come under considerable pressure and this also raises questions. Where will these wind turbines be located in Gelderland?
And are these more scenic than the two wind turbines that have now been scrapped? This decision also comes at the expense of the sustainable interests and ambitions in this region."
Social character
The Horst and Telgt Wind Farm project includes the plan for seven wind turbines along the A28 in the hamlets of Horst and Telgt in Ermelo and Putten, each with a capacity of 6.2 Megawatts.
The park will have a social character: There is 50% local ownership through the energy cooperative Veluwe-Energie, 20 landowners share in the proceeds through a socialized land compensation, there are generous compensation for immediate residents and future initiatives in the area can be made possible through the environmental fund. wider environment are financially supported by the wind farm.
In addition, an extensive participation process has taken place in recent years in which, together with the environment, the plan has been substantively adjusted. For example, the noise standard has been voluntarily adjusted from 47 dB Lden to 45 dB Lden and cast shadows are avoided entirely through additional standstill facilities.
Subsequently, standards have also been included to protect the environment against tonal noise and peak noise.
5 + 2 turbines
In December 2023, the Provincial Executive established the preferred variant with 5 + 2 turbines. The condition for the arrival of 2 additional turbines was that this fits within the new honey buzzard policy. The submitted plan complies with this single condition.
Independent research* shows that a setup with 7 turbines is not so negative that 2 turbines have to be removed. 5 Turbines may result in a small landscape improvement at project level, but this improvement is not such that the 2 wind turbines should be eliminated. Furthermore, the previous Plan EIA shows that the other locations for this RES region all score worse on the landscape component due to their location in valuable open landscape and/or national landscape.
Advantages
Prowind and Veluwe-Energie see several reasons why 7 turbines are a better idea than 5:
- Very necessary to achieve the RES target. The objective of the RES region North Veluwe is not achieved by 5.
- Contributes to a better sun/wind ratio. With 7 turbines, the sun/wind ratio improves significantly in this RES region, which was requested in Parliament motion 21M37 to GS.
- More development space for homes and businesses. With 5 turbines, spatial developments in this region become even more dependent on power supply via TenneT's overcrowded transmission network at Harderwijk station. A project with 7 turbines is a good solution for grid congestion.
- More benefit for the environment. Over the entire duration of 25 years, the Horst en Telgt project with 7 turbines will yield 1.3 million euros more for the environment than with 5 turbines.
GS's defense
In its defense, GS relies on the landscape improvement that 5 turbines would produce. By deleting the two eastern turbines, the remaining 5 turbines form a line that is more or less parallel to the A28 motorway. The province indicates that this arrangement is also the preference of the Municipality of Ermelo. The Provincial Executive points out that the arrangement with 5 turbines saves one seriously inconvenienced person compared to the arrangement with 7 turbines.
Support from other parties
The proposal for 7 turbines is now also supported by VNO-NCW and Natuur en Milieu Gelderland. According to the employers' organization, this number is desperately needed because companies without the generation capacity will only get into further trouble. Due to the overcrowded power network, new companies already have to wait for a connection.
Nature and Environment Gelderland emphasizes to the members of the Provincial Council that the RES goals are becoming further out of sight with the decision for 5 turbines. She points out that this energy must then be generated elsewhere and points out that opting for fewer turbines means further delays for regional and spatial developments such as housing construction due to the pressure on the electricity grid.
NedZero understands the political and administrative considerations, but advocates making the best possible use of suitable wind locations:
"The less wind energy a location is allowed to generate, the more locations are needed for the energy transition.
Other challenges will also be affected: if these two turbines fail, 23.5 GWh will not be generated for about 9,400 households. Placing two turbines elsewhere takes 8 years. The consequences do not translate 1-to-1 to the housing task, but it is certain that it will have a delaying effect."
Final decision
Prowind and Veluwe Energie have legally substantiated their argument. Given the need to meet the goals for the RES and climate agreement for 2030, the interests for the environment, partly as a solution to grid congestion, and the spatial acceptability of 7 wind turbines, the parties argue for a final decision in favor of the proposed seven turbines.
The Provincial Council of Gelderland will decide on the integration plan in the State Assembly on 2 and 3 July.
If the province decides to allow only 5 turbines, the initiators will go to court. In doing so, politicians are not adhering to 'legal reality', says Thijs Afman, director of Prowind.
*Environmental impact report Windpark Horst en Telgt - page 57: table 3.8 and page 294: Section 19.9.5.
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