Renewable Energy

Wind Farm & Hydro Energy Development

At RDS Forestry we actively work on new opportunities with a number of wind farm developers and have signed exclusivity options on several properties throughout Scotland, of which several are now in construction / operational status. We are also availing of hydro power generation on our client’s properties and are pleased to see desk top proposal becoming operational sites.

We have historically completed site investigation projects at Markhill, Whitelee, Black Law and Ewe Hill wind farms to create access tracks through forests to turbine and borrow pit locations. We have assisted as forestry consultants on several other projects as advisors to construction companies including Kilgallioch and Kype Muir wind farms.

The services we can offer include marking and mapping out road lines and turbine locations, managing the harvesting process, and supervise all site requirements during the Site Investigation and construction phase of wind farm projects.

At present we are also very active in providing consultancy and advice to wind farm developers during the design and planning process. A fundamental aspect at the design phase is to assess the influence of the existing forest on the flow pattern of the wind. We assist in this by identifying areas of the forest which are to be removed for the construction and operation of the development.

We outline the proposed management practices, harvesting operations, and transportation of timber products from the forest to the market. We also identify potential restocking proposals for land lost to development, compensatory planting solutions and future land management options. These proposals are designed in partnership with developers and key stakeholders throughout the planning and consultation process in line with current best guidance.