Paragraph 17 Post construction surveysI1

England, Wales and Scotland

(1)

The undertaker shall, in discharging condition 11(1)(b), submit details for written approval by the MMO in consultation with Natural England and JNCC of proposed post-construction surveys, including methodologies and timings, and a proposed format, content and timings for providing reports on the results at least four months prior to the commencement of any survey works detailed within.

(2)

The survey proposals shall specify each survey’s objectives and explain how it will assist in either informing a useful and valid comparison with the pre-construction position and/or will enable the validation or otherwise of key predictions in the environmental statement.

(3)

The post construction surveys referred to in paragraph (1) shall unless otherwise agreed with the MMO have due regard to but not be limited to the need to undertake—

(a)

for the purpose of assessing any changes in seabed topography—

(i)

a desk based assessment (which takes account of all factors which influence scour) to identify a sample of adjacent turbines with greatest potential for scour, to be submitted to the MMO; and

(ii)

subsequently, one high resolution swath bathymetric survey and side scan sonar survey per annum around the sample of adjacent turbines to a distance of three turbine spacings, to be used to validate the desk based assessment,

further surveys may be required if there are significant differences between the modelled scour and recorded scour;

(b)

a survey(s) to determine the location, extent and composition of any benthic habitats of the area(s) within the Order limits in which construction works were carried out of conservation, ecological and or economic importance to validate predictions made in the environmental statement;

(c)

dependent on the outcome of the survey undertaken in condition 15(2)(a) above, a survey(s) to determine the effects of construction activity on any benthic Annex 1 Habitat in whole or in part inside the area(s) within the Order limits;

(d)

a survey(s) of the extent of fish and shellfish populations and spawning activity within the Order limits in which construction works were carried out, and any wider areas where appropriate, for comparison against the results of the baseline survey carried out under condition 15(2)(e);

(e)

a sidescan sonar and bathymetry survey(s) at the locations within the Order limits in which construction works were carried out after the first occurrence of a 1 in 10 year wave event within the Order limits seaward of MHWS in terms of wave height measured from the Greenwich Light Vessel Waverider buoy located at 50°23′.100N, 000°00′.00E; and

(f)

one high resolution swath bathymetric survey across the area(s) within the Order limits in which construction works were carried out to assess any changes in bedform topography and such further monitoring as may be agreed to ensure scour equilibrium has been reached and that the cables have been buried.

(4)

The undertaker shall carry out the surveys agreed under paragraph (1) for 3 years post-construction, which could be non-consecutive years, and provide the agreed reports in the agreed format in accordance with the agreed timetable, unless otherwise agreed in writing with the MMO in consultation with Natural England and JNCC.

Annotations

Commencement

I1: Sch. 13 Pt. 2 para. 17 in force at 6.8.2014, see art. 1