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This research was commissioned to further the understanding of decommissioning and long term
restoration options for onshore wind farms. The aim was to provide a step-by-step
approach to considering the best environmental options for long-term restoration and the
post-operational stage of a wind farm development.
Context in source publication
Context 1
... summary, there is a relatively low environmental risk associated with reinforced concrete that is left in situ (The Concrete Society pers comm. 2013), and the noise, ground disturbance and cost (excavation/breaking/processing/transporting), along with associated carbon emissions, may create a larger environmental impact than leaving such concrete in situ. Figure 13 provides suggested measures that can be taken for the decommissioning of turbine bases. It should be noted, however, that some ground conditions can be dynamic, such as upland peatland environments. Therefore the decision to retain a buried structure should take into account the longer term stability of the landform in order to avoid buried structures becoming exposed in the future. Key design considerations at design/construction stage include additional protection measures to prevent corrosion (cement mixes, steel protection), and drainage to permit wind farm requirements and future proofing for the ...
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Citations
... Total repowering, on the other hand, consists of trying to use most of the original electrical system by installing more powerful turbines on existing foundations [122]. Finally, decommissioning is the final phase decision that can be considered as the opposite of the installation phase [123]. ...
Offshore wind energy has been identified as one of the most promising and increasingly attractive sources of energy. This technology offers a long-term power-generation source, less environmental impact, and fewer physical restrictions. However, given the complexity of this technology, economic feasibility studies are essential. Thus, this study aims to identify the main trends and criteria or the methods used in the economic feasibility studies of offshore wind energy, providing a review of the state of the art in this literature. For this, a Systematic Literature Review was carried out. The article shows the growing interest in offshore wind power generation and highlights how recently the interest in the studies that assess the technical-economic feasibility of this source has grown; it presents the main milestones of the topic. Based on a structured literature review, this article identifies the main trends in this topic: (i) wind farms, (ii) risk, (iii) floating offshore wind farms, (iv) decommissioning and repowering, (v) net present value, (vi) life cycle cost, and (vii) multi-criteria decision-making; it provides a broad view of the methodological possibilities and specificities for investors and researchers interested in conducting studies on the economic feasibility of offshore wind generation. In addition, finally, a research agenda is proposed.
... Decommissioning could also be termed "abandonment" [4,5]. It can also be seen as the reverse of the installation process [6]. Previously, several factors could contribute to the project abandonment. ...
Every project management will strive to ensure that one project can operate without any problems. Unfortunately, some projects are still abandoned due to certain reasons. If the abandonment occurs, the requirement to submit an abandonment plan is stipulated on the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Guideline in Malaysia, 2016. Unfortunately, still lack of resources on pre-project abandonment guidelines which will lead to poor project abandonment report preparation and assessment. Thus, this study aims to determine crucial indicators for assessing the pre-abandoned project, proposing a framework of Malaysia Guidelines for Pre- Project Abandonment Plan (PAP), and validating the draft of the Malaysia Guidelines Framework for PAP. The collected data was compiled from various sources, including document review, survey, and Delphi Method (focus group discussion). The survey conducted proved that the most crucial indicators for the assessment of pre-abandoned project were (i) waste management, (ii) allocation of environmental budgeting, (iii) inventory of scheduled waste, (iv) slurry management, (v) method of demolished, (vi) safety and health of workers, (vii)drainage management system, (viii) site management, (ix) type of treatment plant, and (x) site housekeeping. This framework will assist both report preparer and policymakers on project abandonment report preparation and evaluation, respectively. The development of this framework was strengthened by comprising related legislations, and each indicator synchronized towards Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2030.
... The relevance of decommissioning is closely related to the maturity of each given sector. Offshore wind farm interest groups are mostly focused on efficiency gains, attributing a secondary role to end-of-life analyses [21]; however, nuclear energy operators have deep concerns in respect of the decommissioning of installations. Such activity is forecasted to experience considerable growth from now until 2040 [12]; therefore, the end of O&G offshore structures has become a worldwide concern [19]. ...
The offshore harnessing of oil and gas resources is made possible by massive infrastructures installed at sea. At the end-of-life stage, in the absence of new uses for offshore installations, decommissioning proceedings usually take place, requiring the removal and final disposal of all materials. In Brazilian waters, decommissioning is hampered by high costs. The offshore wind-power sector has arisen as a new clean power source, in line with worldwide de-carbonization initiatives. In this context, we propose an innovative approach suggesting offshore wind power projects as an alternative to the removal and final disposal of infrastructures, a potential solution to Brazilian offshore decommissioning. In this article we report on the assessment of structures at the end of their lifecycle along with decommissioning cost estimation. Then, we explore wind turbine installation viability along the Brazilian coast and estimate the levelized cost of energy for each wind turbine. Finally, the results allow us to conduct a critical analysis of customary decommissioning versus the repurposing of infrastructures as offshore wind power project sites in two scenarios involving site repurposing. Our main results indicate that the CapEx discount rate of wind power projects offsetting decommissioning is considerable, as are the benefits of delaying decommissioning in terms of reduced carbon emissions and the social effects of increased local employment rates, through the repurposing of offshore oil and gas infrastructures.
... The selectivity of this action is apparent from the way that policy is acting on the siteand thereby myriad socio-ecological relationships between wind energy exploitation and the wider areabut not necessarily on specific facilities. Wind farm facilities may be repowered or extended, causing an array of material changes with their own reversibility challenges arising in decommissioning [103][104][105], as we discuss below. Meanwhile, the repowering and life-extension of schemes is explicitly supported, with the 2017 policy stating that the government's position 'remains one of clear support in principle for repowering at existing sites' 2 , highlighting the benefits of repowering, including maximising 'value for Scotland in terms of economic, social, and environmental benefits' 3 . ...
... Such selectiveness has some potentially problematic omissions. Welstead et al. [104], in their study of Restoration and Decommissioning Plans (RDP's) for Scottish wind farm sites, noted how such conventions omit the ongoing existence of subsurface cables and concrete foundations. Such residual debris may accumulate on sites subject to successive repowering, where bigger, differently-positioned turbines generate new foundations and connections, with ecological and hydrological consequences. ...
The extent to which the impacts of renewable energy development might be reversible is an important dimension of debates about environmental acceptability, magnified in significance by the sector's rapid expansion and the inexorable ageing of facilities. However, despite frequent claims that the impacts of renewable energy are reversible, the complex realities of impact (ir)reversibility have attracted minimal systematic research. This paper addresses this gap with the first review of the research literature on impact (ir)reversibility, focused on onshore wind, and makes a number of contributions. Firstly, it shows that determining whether impacts are reversible or not inevitably entails selective, value-laden judgements about what matters and why. Secondly, a problem with much of the existing literature on (ir)reversibility issues is its abstract and hypothetical nature, detached from actual end-of-life decisions about renewable energy facilities, and their relationship with sites and landscapes. These insights are used to generate a conceptual framework for investigating impact (ir)reversibility-emphasising the benchmark, value basis, object of focus, allocation of responsibility, and regulatory mechanisms and the ways that long-term, end-of-life impacts are governed. The value of this framework is demonstrated through three empirical vignettes from the UK, and used to generate an agenda for future research.
... Decommissioning has been described as "de-energising and removing wind farm infrastructure", in which de-energising involves the disconnecting of the wind turbines and/or whole farm from power transmission [259]. The standardisation of decommissioning is expected to be limited due to the technical diversity of offshore wind farms, weather conditions and site-specific conditions [199]. ...
Circular economy and renewable energy infrastructure such as offshore wind farms are often assumed to be developed in synergy as part of sustainable transitions. Offshore wind is among the preferred technologies for low-carbon energy. Deployment is forecast to accelerate over ten times faster than onshore wind between 2021 and 2025, while the first generation of offshore wind turbines is about to be decommissioned. However, the growing scale of offshore wind brings new sustainability challenges. Many of the challenges are circular economy related, such as increasing resource exploitation and competition, and underdeveloped end-of-use solutions for decommissioned components and materials. But circular economy is not yet commonly and systematically applied to offshore wind. Circular economy is a whole system approach aiming to make better use of products, components and materials throughout their consecutive lifecycles. The purpose of this study is to enable the integration of a sustainable circular economy into the design, development, operation and end-of-use management of offshore wind infrastructure. This will require a holistic overview of potential circular economy strategies that apply to offshore wind because focus on no, or a subset of, circular solutions would open the sector to the risk of unintended consequences such as replacing carbon impacts with water pollution, and short-term private cost savings with long-term bills for tax payers. This study starts with a systematic review of circular economy and wind literature as a basis for the co-production of a framework to embed a sustainable circular economy throughout the lifecycle of offshore wind energy infrastructure, resulting in eighteen strategies: design for circular economy, data and in-formation, recertification, dematerialisation, waste prevention, modularisation, maintenance and repair, reuse and repurpose, refurbish and remanufacturing, lifetime extension, repowering, decommissioning, site recovery, disassembly, recycling, energy recovery, landfill and re-mining. An initial baseline review for each strategy is included. The application, and transferability of the framework to other energy sectors, such as oil & gas and onshore wind, are discussed. The article concludes with an agenda for research and innovation and actions to take by industry and government.
... The ultimate goal of reclamation is to create conditions (landforms, soils, vegetation, and hydrologic regimes) compatible with adjacent or desired end land use; depending on the desired outcome this could result in restoration to original ecosystems (National Research Council 2007;Welstead et al. 2013;Macdonald et al. 2015b;Golder Associates 2016;Dhar et al. , 2020aDhar et al. , 2020bLupardus et al. 2019). Reclamation of geothermal plants will generally be similar to oil and gas well site reclamation, as extraction follows similar procedures. ...
... Long-term storage can change soil properties, specifically seed bank efficacy (Mackenzie and Naeth 2019). Therefore, design and construction stages of stockpiles need careful consideration (National Research Council 2007;Welstead et al. 2013;Mackenzie and Naeth 2019) and stockpiled soils should be revegetated to prevent erosion and maintain biological viability (Dhar et al. 2019). Other site preparations may include gouging, scarifying, dozer track walking, mulching, fertilizing, seeding, and planting, depending on site conditions (National Research Council 2007;Welstead et al. 2013;. ...
... Therefore, design and construction stages of stockpiles need careful consideration (National Research Council 2007;Welstead et al. 2013;Mackenzie and Naeth 2019) and stockpiled soils should be revegetated to prevent erosion and maintain biological viability (Dhar et al. 2019). Other site preparations may include gouging, scarifying, dozer track walking, mulching, fertilizing, seeding, and planting, depending on site conditions (National Research Council 2007;Welstead et al. 2013;. In some cases, use of woody debris can reduce erosion and facilitate native plant community development (Brown and Naeth 2014). ...
With increasing costs, finite sources and adverse environmental impacts of fossil fuels, global attention has focused on developing renewable and clean sources of energy. Although geothermal energy is considered one of the most promising sources of renewable and clean energy, it may not be as benign as widely believed. In this paper, we evaluate the environmental challenges for geothermal resource extraction and describe potential reclamation strategies for disturbed ecosystems. Generally the environmental impacts of geothermal power generation and direct use are minor and in most cases controllable. Geothermal plants have low emissions of carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide and ammonia, and low land and water usage; these impacts can be minimized through appropriate mitigation measures. Other potential emissions such as mercury, boron and arsenic may result in local and regional environmental consequences, although their impacts are poorly understood on a global scale. Geothermal plants can alter vegetation and wildlife habitat by reducing species diversity and community composition. There are small risks of subsidence, induced seismicity and landslides, with potential serious consequences. Integration of timely reclamation during and after plant operation can significantly contribute to reducing long term reclamation costs while enhancing ecosystem recovery. This paper is expected to contribute to understanding environmental impacts associated with geothermal energy production and to determining appropriate mitigation and land reclamation strategies.
... The ultimate goal of reclamation is to reclaim to the original landform and ecology or create a condition that approximates or blends with the surrounding landform, ecology and land use (National Research Council, 2007;Patton et al., 2010;Welstead et al., 2013;Macdonald et al., 2015b;Golder Associate, 2016;Dhar et al., 2018;Lupardus et al., 2019;Dhar et al., 2019b). This involves, salvaging and reusing all available topsoil and suitable subsoil in a timely manner, revegetating disturbed areas to appropriate plant species, controlling wind and water erosion, controlling undesirable plant species such as noxious weeds, and monitoring results (Patton et al., 2010;Macdonald et al., 2015b;Boswell Wind LLC, 2017;Dhar et al., 2018). ...
... However, long term storage will change soil properties, specifically seed bank efficacy (Mackenzie and Naeth, 2019;Dhar et al., 2019a). Therefore consideration of stockpiling and acquisition of suitable soil material should be given at the design and construction stage (National Research Council, 2007;Welstead et al., 2013). Salvaged topsoil is a significant source of inexpensive, diverse and ecologically adapted native seeds and vegetative propagules resources (MacKenzie and Naeth, 2010;Macdonald et al., 2015b;Dhar et al., 2018;Dhar et al., 2019a). ...
... Micro-topographic heterogeneity creates favourable growing conditions for greater species richness and abundance at an operational scale and helps to germinate a wider range of species from the propagule bank (Tilman, 1994;Dhar et al., 2018). In some cases seeding or transplanting may be required to accelerate the reclamation process (National Research Council, 2007;Welstead et al., 2013). Other site preparation techniques such as mulching, hydro seeding, targeted fertilization, watering, and other surface roughening techniques (e.g. ...
Global energy demands and environmental concerns are a driving force for use of alternative, sustainable and clean energy sources. Solar and wind are among the most promising sources and have been developing steadily in recent years. However, these energy developments are not free of adverse environmental consequences, which require appropriate reclamation procedures. The environmental issues caused by solar and wind plants were reviewed in this paper by summarizing existing studies and synthesizing the principles that could underlie development of reclamation practices. The major environmental drawback of solar and wind energy plants are bird mortality, biodiversity, and habitat loss; noise; visual impact; and hazardous chemicals used in solar panels. Available mitigation measures to minimize these adverse environmental impacts, and appropriate reclamation protocol for the disturbed ecosystems, including key research needs are discussed. We include socio-economic perspectives of solar and wind energy, such as policy related to re-powering initiatives, decommissioning, and reclamation liability. The intent of this paper is to provide current perspectives on environmental issues associated with solar and wind energy development, strategies to mitigate environmental impacts, and potential reclamation practices to solar and wind energy planners and developers.
... Decommissioning can be deemed the last phase of the life cycle of a project. In many cases, it can also be seen as the reverse of the installation process (Welstead et al., 2013). It essentially consists in the deactivation of an infrastructure, which often occurs because the infrastructure is no longer economically viable. ...
... Decommissioning is currently a very relevant area of interest within the energy sector. For two examples of literature dealing with wind farms and solar power, we refer to (Welstead et al., 2013) and (Jacobson and Delucchi, 2011), respectively. Indeed, wind and solar power generation have become more common and gained importance around the world (e.g., Smyth et al., 2015), which anticipates an increased demand for decommissioning activities in these sectors in the near future. ...
... Indeed, wind and solar power generation have become more common and gained importance around the world (e.g., Smyth et al., 2015), which anticipates an increased demand for decommissioning activities in these sectors in the near future. Perhaps because they are pioneers in the deployment of a recent technology, offshore wind farm operators are often concerned with improving the efficiency of the generation, thus relegating the analysis of end of life processes to a secondary role (Welstead et al., 2013). Such an analysis, however, may be needed in the near future, considering the typically short life cycle of wind turbines, which is around 20 years, as reported in (Sun et al., 2017). ...
Regardless of the economic activity, decommissioning decisions are often highly complex. This is due to the diversity of operational and local parameters, as well as the multitude of stakeholders involved, who generally have conflicting interests. This sets up a challenging multi-criteria decision problem on the activities to be carried out during the decommissioning process. This paper aims to present an overview of decision-support tools applied to decommissioning, and covers many economic sectors, with a focus on the oil and gas sector and on multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) methods. The paper delves deep into the aspects to be considered before reaching a decision, examining the experiences and methods found both in industrial reports and in academic papers.
... Decommissioning can be identified as the most important of all the end of life strategies, as it will always be present in any project and all the paths lead to it as all the other end of life decisions will end up, either way, with this stage. It is the last phase in a project's lifecycle and can be considered as the opposite of the installation phase [17]. The principle "the polluter pays" applies [10], which ensures the site is left as it was before the deployment of the project, and includes a two-year period of monitoring and remediation [18]. ...
Since Vindeby in 1991, more than 100 projects have been installed in Europe, and will need decommissioning one day. Despite the increasing number of projects reaching this phase, decommissioning is still an area that has received relatively little attention. This paper considers the practicalities and economic implications of recycling offshore wind components as part of an end of life strategy. There is no existing source that gathers together materials data for currently operational wind turbines in Europe relevant to recycling. Since this information is necessary for any economic analysis of component recycling, such a dataset was generated. The results illustrate the specific wind turbine materials suitable for recycling, expressed in percentage values of the wind turbine's total mass. An economic analysis is then performed to study how recovering these materials and selling them as scrap metal can impact the decommissioning costs. As concluding remarks, recycling offshore wind components could pay for nearly 20% of the total wind farm decommissioning costs if monopile foundations are considered. Furthermore, the volatility of scrap prices is such that this could even help define when it would be best to decommission an offshore wind farm.
... A typical 2.0 MW turbine with three 50 m blades has approximately 20 tonnes of fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) material and an 8 MW turbine has approximately 80 tonnes of glass (G) and carbon (C) fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) material (1 MW~10 tonnes of FRP, see [1][2][3][4].) As of December 2016, the global cumulative installed wind power capacity was 486,790 MegaWatts (MW) (Figure 1) [5]. Based on a predicted moderate growth scenario from the Global Wind Energy Council [6] for future global wind power installations a total of 16.8 million tonnes of FRP materials will need to be disposed of or recycled by 2030 and 39.8 million tonnes by 2050 ( Figure 2). ...
... Recycling 2018, 8,3 3 of 11 ...
... Recycling 2018,8,3 ...
The very rapid growth in wind energy technology in the last 15 years has led to a rapid growth in the amount of non-biodegradable, thermosetting fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) composite materials used in wind turbine blades. This paper discusses conceptual architectural and structural options for recycling these blades by reusing parts of wind turbine blades in new or retrofitted housing projects. It focuses on large-sized FRP pieces that can be salvaged from the turbine blades and can potentially be useful in infrastructure projects where harsh environmental conditions (water and high humidity) exist. Since reuse design should be for specific regional locations and architectural characteristics the designs presented in this paper are for the coastal regions of the Yucatan province in Mexico on the Gulf of Mexico where low-quality masonry block informal housing is vulnerable to severe hurricanes and flooding. To demonstrate the concept a prototype 100 m long wind blade model developed by Sandia National Laboratories is used to show how a wind blade can be broken down into parts, thus making it possible to envision architectural applications for the different wind blade segments for housing applications.
