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My design rules for any wind farm near Sleeping Beauty Range

• Moorland Without Turbines
• Proact: Wind farms and birds
  

• Sleeping Beauty Range
• My design rules
• Summary of my feedback
  
• Acknowledgments

Sleeping Beauty Range

My design rules

• Suitability evaluation of areas
• Disturbance of the National Scenic Area
• The paint color of the wind mills
• Visibility of wind mills on Sleeping Beauty Range
• Proposed continuation of a tradition

• Suitability evaluation of areas
  How is it possible that Lewis Windpower Limited sees no merit in a wind farm on Sleeping Beauty Range (see their Environmental Statement, in particular slope (fig. 8.4) and remaining areas (fig 8.8)).
  
  
  Green is remaining area where wind mills can be build (according to Lewis Windpower Ltd)
  
  
  This needs proper evaluation by Scottish Executive experts in this area.
  
• Disturbance of the National Scenic Area
  The proposed wind farm is partly planned inside the South Lewis, Harris and North Uist National Scenic Area (NSA), this should not be allowed, otherwise it will cause moderate impact on this NSA (NTS: Non Technical Statement, Dec. 2004, Land Use Consultants, page 9). It is proposed to relocate these wind mills to outside the NSA.
  
• The paint color of the wind mills
  The color of the wind mills (now defined as off-white) should be in such a way that they are camouflaged as much as possible (seen from the Calanais region). Keeping in mind that the wind mills can be below and/or above horizon.
  
• Visibility of wind mills on Sleeping Beauty Range
  Evaluating the 2Ddensity (=perceived spacing seen from Calanais I) of wind mills on Sleeping Beauty Range:
• The distribution of the wind mills on Sleeping Beauty Range (yellowish are is the view from Calanais I) can be seen below:
  
  
  Location of wind mills according to Beinn Mhór Power.
  The yellowish area the the Sleeping Beauty Range view from Calanais.
  The region below the green line is the designated National Scene Area (NSA).
  The red windmills should be relocated (see text)
  
  
• The Sleeping Beauty Range is visible from stone 29 (middle of stone circle) and stone 8 (end of avenue) of Calanais I.
  
  
  Sleeping Beauty Range seen from centre of stone circle at Calanais I
  
  
• Minimum distance between Calanais I and wind mills on Sleeping Beauty Range is L=~19000 [m]
• Assuming wind mills (like the Vestas V90) of x [m] average tower width [(x₁+x₂)/2], y [m] height of tower, p [m] average width of blade  ((width₁+width₂)/2), q [m] length of one blade and r number of blades
  Say x= ~3.3, y=~90, p=~1.95, q=~44 [m], r=3
  The area of one wind mill as seen from Calanais I is w=atan(x/L)*atan(y/L) + r*atan(p/L)*atan(q/L) [º²]:
  w= 0.005 [º²]
• Both quarter Moons (in a likely proto-science scenario) and full Moons (in a likely ceremonial scenario) are important for the Calanais region.
  The illuminated lunar area of quarter Moon is 0.79 [º²].
• The maximum coverage of the quarter Moon by one windmill is (w/0.79*100%=) 0.6%
  
  
  
  Windmills on Sleeping Beauty Range with full Moon.
  (computer generated picture by Beinn Mhór Power [VP13] and my own addition of the Moon)
  
  
  
• The 2Ddensity between wind mills is around 360 [m], so the 2Ddistance in degrees seen from Calanais I is:
  atan (360/L) = 1.1º.
• Several wind mills specifically spoil the view of the Sleeping Beauty Range, because of their relative height compared to the Moon. Remember during the southern lunar standstill event the moon follows very closely the horizon, so the Moon will 'touch' several wind mills.
  Although in the NTS (page 15) the visual impact is rated as minor, I would see it more as a major impact due to the assumed importance of this lunar event.
  
• I propose to remove or relocate several wind mills (around 12 [red dots]) in such a way that they are less pronounced with regard to the ridge of the Sleeping Beauty Range;
  So remove them or put them at lower grounds by moving them to the south of the present location.
  
  
  
  Same as above picture, but now without the red wind mills
  (computer generated picture by Beinn Mhór Power [VP13], my own addition of the Moon and my own removal of the red wind mills)
  
  
  
• This removal or relocation of wind mills may results in a lower output of the wind farm, this lower output can perhaps be seen as partly funded by the proposed Eisgein Trust or the Community ownership and involvement (NTS, page 4); which is 25% of the 133 proposed wind mills: so 33 wind mills (which easily can fit the possible effect of the wind mills that need removal/relocation: 12).
  But one needs to be careful that Beinn Mhór Power Ltd does not put all the effects of a possible lower output to the above mentioned options, they also have their own share in this.
  
• Proposed continuation of a tradition
  Taking this removal or relocation into account, I propose that the wind farm mills in general will be located in such a 3D layout that it expresses a modern relation between Sleeping Beauty Range, the lunar southern major standstill events and Calanais I.
  See this as a modern art object; mirroring neolithic man and making the wind mill's concrete foundations as a kind of future heritage monument:
• Have the wind mills in such a configuration that they are least seen from Calanais I (perhaps only the blades).
• Do something special at that specific location on Sleeping Beauty Range where the Moon rises at its southern major standstill limit azimuth (as seen from Calanais I)
• Outside the defined Sleeping Beauty range the 2Ddensity of the wind mills is different to accentuate its importance.
• This is a delicate design (but not complex), so please consult me before it will be implemented.
  

Summary of my feedback

1. Suitability evaluation of areas
   The Scottish Executive needs to understand why different proposals give different suitability evaluations for the region around the Sleeping Beauty Range
2. Disturbance of the National Scenic Area
   Relocated the wind mills from inside the South Lewis, Harris and North Uist National Scenic Area to outside this NSA.
   
3. The paint color of the wind mills
   The wind mills should have a proper camouflage color.
4. Visibility of wind mills on Sleeping Beauty Range
   12 wind mills, which are on the Sleeping Beauty Range ridge, should be relocated or removed from the Muaitheabhal Wind farm proposal.
   
5. Proposed continuation of a tradition
   The wind mill layout of the farm should honor the possible itentional Neolithic relation between; the Sleeping Beauty Range, the Moon and the Neolithic monuments in the Calanais region and specifically Calanais I.
   

Acknowledgments

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