Leading international renewable energy consultancy Natural Power has been appointed as the construction hydrological support team at Drone Hill Wind Farm in Scotland for global power company AES Wind Generation. The wind farm will come with a community fund for local initiatives and will comprise of 22 turbines with a maximum height of 76 meters. After receiving permission on the 24th of November 2008, construction is set begin the year of 2010.
Natural Power's hydrology team, led by Kelly Wyness, completed the private water supply assessment as part of the site planning conditions in 2009. The team have now also been appointed to carry out private water sampling and watercourse flow monitoring on the site with tests determining if the construction of the wind farm is having any effect on the underlying hydrological regime.
The team's work takes place pre, during and post construction and all methodologies have been approved following consultation with SEPA, The Scottish Environment Protection Agency. To help quantify any effects on the site hydrology the team will also be downloading data from a site specific rain gauge to help determine if effects can be associated with climatic conditions or wind farm construction.