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What impact would the biomass plant have on the landscape?
A comprehensive Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment has been undertaken, which aimed to identify the likely effect the biomass plant would have on the existing landscape and the visual environment. This assessment investigated potential effects on views, landscape character, designated landscapes and key routes. Photomontages were produced for a number of representative viewpoints identified to aid the assessment. The photomontages were agreed through consultation with Breckland Council and were displayed at the public exhibition.
Careful siting and detailed design of the biomass plant have been a consideration from the outset to reduce its potential effects on the local area. Following a detailed assessment of the potential impacts of the biomass plant on the landscape, the final design was developed to strike a balance between maximising energy production and minimising visual impact.
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What would the biomass plant look like?
A site layout of the biomass plant in available on this website, to view it please visit the Our Plans page. The site layout shows that a large proportion of the site will be allocated to planting, providing screening to add to the existing shrubbery to shield the biomass plant, even from long distances.
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What attempts are being made to preserve the landscape?
Careful siting and detailed design of the biomass plant have been a consideration from the outset to reduce its potential effects on the local area. Mitigation measures put forward by Breckland Council request that all the biomass plant buildings will need to be painted in neutral colours, the lighting will need to be controlled and there will need to be significantly more planting. Appropriate native tree and shrub planting would be selected that would blend into the local planting character, which will help to increase biodiversity and improve local habitats for wildlife and fauna. The trees and hedgerows on the site can provide screening even at long distances.
Lighting would be kept exceptionally low and controllable, being dimmed or switched off during out of hours. During construction the mitigation measures extend to the protection of trees and monitoring of noise.