Newlands Hill Wind Farm, East Lothian

Since 2021, Headland Archaeology’s Consultancy Team had been working on the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for a proposed wind farm in East Lothian, which was submitted to the Energy Consents Unit (ECU) in November 2023. The proposed development site measured approximately 1,000 hectares and comprised 17 wind turbines of up to 8MW each (generating up to 136MW), with a maximum tip height of 200 metres.

The cultural heritage EIA included a baseline desk-based assessment and walkover survey to determine archaeological potential. A total of 29 heritage assets were identified within the site. Working with the project’s design team, an infrastructure layout was developed which avoided all known heritage assets within the site, except for a historic trackway which was crossed by internal access tracks and could not be avoided.

In addition, potential impacts along the 19km route required for delivery of the Abnormal Indivisible Loads (AIL) from the A1 to the site were assessed. Solutions were developed to avoid a Scheduled Monument, and areas of high archaeological potential along the route were assessed and defined. The route would involve direct impacts on four heritage assets, including a bridge over a culverted watercourse. These would be mitigated by appropriate levels of survey, excavation, recording, analysis, and publication of results in accordance with a Written Scheme of Investigation (WSI). This included provisions for accidental damage to historic fingerposts along the AIL route, and the WSI was to be agreed with East Lothian Council in advance of construction.

Impacts on the setting of heritage assets could also arise due to the scale of the proposed turbines, their potential to detract from key views to or from a heritage asset, or changes affecting how a heritage asset was experienced. Screening therefore considered each potentially affected asset to identify those within the zone of theoretical visibility (ZTV) and to assess whether their cultural significance was likely to be harmed by the development.

Field visits were undertaken to the nearby highly designated and sensitive landscape Yester Estate in Gifford, which is protected as an Inventory Garden and Designed Landscape and Conservation Area, and contains Scheduled Monuments and numerous Listed Buildings. Early engagement with Historic Environment Scotland (HES) was undertaken, and photomontage visualisations were provided for key locations within the Estate identified as most relevant for assessing the potential effects of the proposed development.

Significant adverse effects were identified as likely at this stage. In response, the client (Belltown) undertook a redesign, repositioning the turbines further from the Yester Estate. This redesign also reduced the impact of the development on the setting of several Iron Age forts located along the base of the Lothian Edge.

The final design was assessed in the EIA as resulting in no more than a negligible overall effect on cultural heritage. HES agreed that the revised proposal would be unlikely to cause significant adverse effects. However, East Lothian Council disagreed and indicated their intention to object to the development. As a result, the project will proceed to a Public Local Inquiry (PLI), for which Belltown has retained Headland’s Consultancy services.