Impact assessment for renewable energy development: analysis of impacts and mitigation practices for wind energy in western Canada

IF 1.8 4区社会学 Q3 ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES

Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal Pub Date : 2022-10-27 DOI:10.1080/14615517.2022.2139468

Camila Martins Godinho, B. Noble, G. Poelzer, K. Hanna

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引用次数: 1

Abstract

ABSTRACT Impact assessment can play an important role in global energy transition, delivering knowledge to identify and manage the impacts of renewable energy projects. Yet, there are enduring concerns about IA’s efficacy for renewable energy development. Based on content analysis of IA applications for wind energy development in Canada, this paper examines the environmental and social impacts typically assessed across wind energy projects and the mitigation solutions proposed. Results indicate considerable imbalance between biophysical versus social impacts, including mitigation solutions. IAs include far more solutions for managing biophysical impacts than social ones, with impact-to-mitigation ratios of 1:4.3 and 1:1.3 respectively. Most mitigations focus on impact minimisation, followed by avoidance, and are often vague and imprecise regarding the timing, methods of implementation, and responsibility. Notwithstanding common impacts, mitigation actions that were common across projects were too vague or imprecise to support transferable practice to find efficiencies in assessment. Improved understanding the impacts of renewable energy projects and mitigation solutions, and learning from one project to the next, are foundational to advancing the role of IA the transition to renewable energy.

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可再生能源发展的影响评估：加拿大西部风能的影响和缓解措施分析

影响评估可以在全球能源转型中发挥重要作用，为识别和管理可再生能源项目的影响提供知识。然而，对于IA在可再生能源发展方面的效力，人们一直存在担忧。本文基于对加拿大风能开发中IA应用的内容分析，考察了风能项目通常评估的环境和社会影响以及提出的缓解解决方案。结果表明，生物物理影响与社会影响(包括缓解解决方案)之间存在相当大的不平衡。影响评估包括的管理生物物理影响的解决办法远远多于社会影响的解决办法，影响与缓解的比例分别为1:3 .3和1:3 .3。大多数缓解措施侧重于影响最小化，其次是避免影响，并且在时间、实施方法和责任方面往往含糊不清。尽管有共同的影响，但项目间共同的缓解行动过于模糊或不精确，无法支持可转移的做法，无法在评估中找到效率。增进对可再生能源项目和缓解办法的影响的了解，并从一个项目到另一个项目学习，是促进原子能机构在向可再生能源过渡方面发挥作用的基础。

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来源期刊

Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES-

CiteScore

4.60

自引率

22.70%

发文量

期刊介绍： This is the international, peer-reviewed journal of the International Association for Impact Assessment (IAIA). It covers environmental, social, health and other impact assessments, cost-benefit analysis, technology assessment, and other approaches to anticipating and managing impacts. It has readers in universities, government and public agencies, consultancies, NGOs and elsewhere in over 100 countries. It has editorials, main articles, book reviews, and a professional practice section.