Product (industrial): wind turbines with a capacity greater than or equal to 0.5 MW

Decree of the Walloon Government of XXX (date) laying down sector-specific conditions for wind farms with a total capacity greater than or equal to 0.5 MW and amending the Decree of the Walloon Government of 4 July 2002 adopting the list of projects subject to impact studies, classified installations and activities or installations and activities posing a soil risk

The draft aims to regulate the environmental impacts of the operation of wind turbines with a capacity greater than or equal to 0.5 MW.

It relates to operating conditions covering different environmental topics, which are broken down into several measures in the draft:

- consideration of the noise generated by this type of establishment, in particular the singular nature of wind turbine noise;

- exposure of the public to electromagnetic fields in compliance with World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations;

- consideration of the ‘shadow flicker’ phenomenon resulting from the rotation of wind turbine blades;

- accident and fire prevention (safety) through maintenance instructions, site accessibility or the imposition of measures concerning safety equipment;

- preservation of biodiversity by adopting measures specific to certain bat species;

- prevention of any risk of soil pollution;

- site restoration in the event the wind turbines are dismantled.