Abstract Increasing concerns over climate change have prompted rapid growth of renewable energy over the past few decades, particularly wind energy. However, as the installation of wind farms rises, so will the need for decommissioning and analysis of the environmental impacts associated with decommissioning. This paper investigates how Environmental Impacts Assessments (EIA) identify, estimate and manage potential impacts of decommissioning. EIAs from 12 onshore and offshore windfarms consented between 2009 and 2014 in England and Scotland were analysed and compared. Attributes of these windfarms' Environmental Statements (ES) were scored under six categories: decommissioning in EIA stages, definitions of decommissioning, amount of analysis, depth of analysis, impacts identified, and proactive planning. Onshore windfarms generally tended to investigate the impacts of decommissioning less than offshore windfarms, even those which gained consent in the same year. The investigation of the impact of decommissioning improved for windfarms consented in the latter years of the study period. Across the ESs there was a lack of analysis of potential impacts from decommissioning in their own right: not simply as a reversal of the construction process. The impacts of different end of life scenarios were not analysed in any of the ESs studied. There is evidence to suggest the presence of windfarms, especially offshore, could in some cases be environmentally beneficial for certain species. However, the ecological impact of removing offshore structures at the end of life is unknown and is currently not investigated nor predicted in EIAs. Understanding the potential implications of full or partial removal of marine structures, or alternatives to decommissioning, could ensure that appropriate mitigation is considered at an early stage by both developer and consenting authority. That being said, it is also important to update the assessment of potential impacts over the life of the project as more information on the environment is gathered and end of life plans develop.

中文翻译：

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退役对环境的影响：陆上风电场与海上风电场

摘要 在过去的几十年中，对气候变化的日益关注促使可再生能源的快速增长，尤其是风能。然而，随着风电场安装的增加，对退役和与退役相关的环境影响分析的需求也将增加。本文研究了环境影响评估 (EIA) 如何识别、估计和管理退役的潜在影响。对英格兰和苏格兰 2009 年至 2014 年间同意的 12 个陆上和海上风电场的环境影响评估进行了分析和比较。这些风电场的环境声明 (ES) 的属性分为六个类别：EIA 阶段的退役、退役的定义、分析量、分析深度、确定的影响和主动规划。陆上风电场通常比海上风电场更倾向于调查退役的影响，即使是那些在同一年获得同意的风电场。在研究期的最后几年，对风电场退役影响的调查得到了改善。在整个 ES 中，缺乏对退役本身的潜在影响的分析：不仅仅是作为建设过程的逆转。在所研究的任何 ES 中，都没有分析不同生命终结情景的影响。有证据表明，风电场的存在，尤其是海上风电场，在某些情况下可能对某些物种有益。然而，在寿命结束时拆除离岸结构的生态影响尚不清楚，目前在 EIA 中未进行调查或预测。了解全部或部分拆除海洋结构或退役替代方案的潜在影响，可以确保开发商和许可当局在早期阶段考虑适当的缓解措施。话虽如此，随着有关环境的更多信息的收集和生命终结计划的制定，更新对项目生命周期潜在影响的评估也很重要。