Wind farms and groundwater impacts: A practice guide to EIA and Planning considerations

Author: Northern Ireland Environment Agency | Environment, Northern Ireland, Photos

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What impact can a wind farm have on groundwater?

The development of a wind farm has the potential to impact on groundwater quality, groundwater quantity and/or the established groundwater flow regime. Figure 1 shows the scale and extent of the foundation of a single wind turbine which could potentially impact on the aquatic environment. Changes to the local water environment can affect receptors such as wells/boreholes, springs, wetlands and waterways, and can also have implications for groundwater dependent ecology and/or land stability.

Figure 1: Construction of the foundation of a single wind turbine.

The key impacts to groundwater that can result from the construction, operational and decommissioning stages of wind farms are summarised in Table 1 below.

Table 1: Potential impacts on groundwater from wind farms

	Construction Phase	Operational Phase	Decommissioning Phase
Groundwater Flow Regime	Earthworks and site drainage: • Reduction in water table if dewatering is required for turbine foundation construction or borrow pits; • Changes to groundwater distribution and flow.	Physical presence of turbines and tracks: • Possible changes to groundwater distribution; • Reduction in groundwater storage. Reduction of forestry in site area: • Changes to infiltration and surface runoff patterns, thereby influencing groundwater flow and distribution.	Physical presence of former turbines and tracks: • Possible changes to groundwater distribution; • Reduction in groundwater storage.
Groundwater Quality	Earthworks: • Disturbance of contaminated soil and subsequent groundwater pollution. Materials Management: • Pollution from spills or leaks of fuel, oil and building materials.	Materials Management: • Pollution from spills or leaks of fuel or oil.	Use of vehicles and machinery to remove infrastructure: • Pollution from spills or leaks of fuel or oil.

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