Special wind farm plan

Valga Municipality announced in November 2024 that the draft decision on the pre-selection of the location of the Valga Municipality wind farm and the first stage report of the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) had been completed and wished to find out the opinion of the parties involved on the draft decision and the SEA report and to seek the approval of the government authorities for the same materials. The comments on the draft EP and the draft SEA report were invited by 5 January 2025 at the latest. The procedure was conducted in accordance with the provisions of Section 105 of the Planning Act.

To date, the EP and the SEA have been approved by 11 governmental authorities whose areas of competence are covered by the specific local plan. Co-operation with the Environment Agency will continue. The EP and the SEA have been commented on by 36 involved parties or persons who have themselves expressed an interest in being involved in the planning process. Two joint petitions were also submitted to Valga Municipality. Among the contributors were governmental authorities, companies, non-profit organisations, private individuals, etc. who expressed their interest in the project. The Valga Municipal Government, in cooperation with the Valga Municipal Council, drafted positions on the opinions submitted. The opinions submitted and the positions taken on these opinions are summarised in a summary table.

Based on the submitted approvals and opinions, the Valga Municipality Government is now making the necessary amendments to the draft decision on the pre-selection of the location of the special local government plan and the first stage report on the strategic environmental assessment (Planning Act § 105 (3)). Once the cooperation with the Environmental Board has also been completed and the Environmental Board has approved the EP and the SEA, the procedure will move to the stage of public opening of the draft EP and the first stage report of the SEA. Valga Municipality will inform you in writing of the public opening in accordance with § 106(5) of the Planning Act. It is expected that the public opening will take place during the summer months.

The preparation of the Valga Parish Wind Farm Special Plan was started on the basis of the Valga Parish Council Decision No 81 of 25 October 2023, which initiated the preparation of the Special Plan on the proposal of Sunly Wind OÜ and Eurowind Energy OÜ. Sunly Wind OÜ and Eurowind Energy OÜ showed interest in the construction of a wind farm in the north-western part of the territory of Valga municipality, in the area between the Väike Emajõgi River and the Jõhvi-Tartu-Valga road (main road No 3) (planning area of approximately 10 200 ha). Due to the loss of interest of Eurowind Energy OÜ, the Valga Municipal Council reduced the size of the planning area by Decision No 96 of 31 January 2024. The planning was continued on an area of approximately 7 400 ha, for which Sunly Wind OÜ is interested in obtaining a land use solution. The area covered by the specific plan includes parts of the villages of Mustumetsa, Killinge, Kiviküla, Uniküla, Õruste, Tõlliste and Sooru in Valga municipality.

When the specific plan was drawn up, the aim was to draw up a plan at a level of detail that would allow it to be adopted on the basis of a site selection decision. Section 95 of the Planning Act¹ Paragraph 1 allows a local authority, when drawing up a special plan, to refrain from drawing up a detailed solution and to adopt the plan on the basis of a site selection decision, if there are no precluding factors for the further planning of the wind farm with planning conditions and the conditions on the basis of which planning conditions are granted are specified in the site selection decision. The purpose of this provision is to shorten, in justified cases, the time needed for the preparation and procedure of the specific planning.

The purpose of the EP is to select the most suitable locations for the construction of the wind farm and the infrastructure necessary for its operation, and to determine the conditions for the construction of the wind farm and the infrastructure serving it, including the assessment of relevant impacts, including a strategic environmental assessment.

When the specific plan was drawn up, the aim was to draw up a plan at a level of detail that would allow it to be adopted on the basis of a site selection decision. This will be possible if there are no precluding factors for further planning of the wind farm with planning conditions and if the decision on the pre-selection of the site specifies the conditions on which planning conditions are granted.

The EP and the SEA have been carried out on a planning area of 7 400 ha, which includes parts of the villages of Mustumetsa, Killinge, Kiviküla, Uniküla, Õruste, Tõlliste and Sooru in Valga municipality.

During the preparation of the EP and the assessment of the SEA, it was identified that the most suitable sites for the wind farm are TU2, TU3 and TU4 (the history of suitable sites is described in chapter 3.1 of the EP and presented in the main drawing). TU1 is not proposed for wind turbines on bird protection grounds. The pre-selection sites TU2, TU3 and TU4 may be developed with six, nine and eight wind turbines respectively (up to a total of 23), with a maximum permissible top height of 270m. For the construction of wind turbines, the specific plan has designated basic locations in the pre-selection areas. A 50 m variation in the location of the wind turbine is allowed in the design, but other conditions set out in the plan must be respected. In the locations proposed in principle, the plan is feasible.

Approximate locations of the infrastructure required for the wind farm are given in the planning, and the locations of the buildings can be specified in the design based on the conditions set in the planning. Infrastructure serving the wind farm may also be built outside the pre-selection and planning areas. The plan sets out the principles for the construction of the wind farm's interconnection substation and the connecting cable route. A transmission line will be installed in the same corridor as the electricity cable. Access roads with a high load-bearing capacity and permanent access will be required for the construction of the wind turbines and subsequent maintenance. The planning solution provides a basic solution for access roads starting from a public road. The plan sets out the conditions for the provision of fire-fighting water points. The minimum distance from the wind turbine to the water source is 3 km.

With the EP, noise propagation zones have been calculated around the windfarm - the standard noise zones based on the night-time target value for industrial noise. The noise zonings are divided into three categories: an area where Category I quiet and recreational areas cannot be proposed (>35 dB); an area where Category I and above Category II educational, health and social care facilities, residential areas and green areas cannot be proposed (>40 dB); an area where Category I, II and above Category III and IV central areas and public buildings cannot be proposed (>45 dB). This means that in the future, e.g. residential buildings, green areas and recreational facilities cannot be built in the two areas closest to the wind farm outside the area excluded from category I noise. The interested party must ensure that the noise target value is not exceeded in the areas of the standard levels during design and construction.

Based on the conditions set out in the SEA, the EP sets out conditions for the further design of the wind farm to minimise impacts related to shading, visual impacts and impacts on vegetation, birdlife, bats, ecosystems, green network, water, soil and humus, climate, cultural values and communication services. The plan also addresses the issues of climate proofing, water body construction exclusion zones and waste generation.

The SEA report has identified suitable areas for the construction of the wind farm in terms of environmental impacts. Chapter 4 of the SEA report analyses the expected environmental impacts of the wind turbines and the infrastructure inside the wind farm. The expected co-benefits have been assessed in terms of the natural environment (flora, fauna, birds, bats, ecosystem condition and biodiversity, green network including animal habitat connectivity, wildlife, protected areas, water, soil including valuable agricultural land), climate, cultural heritage, existing infrastructure, human health, well-being and property, and landscape.

In the light of the EP and the content of the SEA, it can be confirmed that the most suitable sites for the wind farm, including wind turbines, are TU2, TU3 and TU4. The siting of the wind turbines, the general conditions for their erection, the pre-selection process, the decision taken on the basis of the pre-selection process and the first stage report of the SEA comply with the legislation in force. The information provided in the SEA Phase I report has also been sufficient to make a choice between the different sites considered. The planning solution provides confidence that the plan is feasible subject to the conditions imposed, including mitigation and monitoring measures.

Valga municipality wind farm special planning and strategic environmental assessment (SEA)

• The initiator and promoter is the Valga Municipal Council,
• Prepared by Valga Municipality Government,
• AB Artes Terrae OÜ is the developer of the plan,
• Strategic Environmental Assessment prepared by LEMMA OÜ,
• Interested party Sunly Wind OÜ.

The planning procedure is public. Anyone has the right to participate in the planning procedure, to be involved in the procedure and to give their opinion on the draft plan. If you wish to be involved in the planning procedure or if you have an opinion, you can send your request to Valga Municipality by e-mail to valga@valga.ee or by post to Puiestee tn 8, Valga town, Valga municipality, 68203 Valgamaa.

The procedure of the Valga municipality wind farm specific planning and the preparation of the Strategic Environmental Assessment has been financed by the European Union Next Generation EU funds, measure "Empowering local governments in green investments", project "Empowering the Valga municipality wind farm specific planning procedure".