Development Planning
47. Local plan (and, in future, local development plan) policies should be updated as soon as possible to reflect the policies in this SPP. In all cases, policies should:
- support the Scottish Ministers' commitment to renewable energy and provide positively for its development;
- establish a local contribution for renewable energy in the area;
- identify broad areas of search for onshore wind farms where projects will be supported subject to specific proposals satisfactorily addressing all other material considerations;
- indicate areas or sites where it is judged that proposals for wind farm developments should be avoided because of their natural heritage value or where development would result in unacceptable cumulative impacts;
- confirm that, in all other instances, proposals will be judged on their merits and, in addition, developers will need to demonstrate that there are no suitable opportunities to develop within broad areas of search;
- guide developers on the broad criteria to be considered for all development proposals, including those falling outwith broad areas of search;
- include policies which support wider application of smaller scale renewable technologies, such as community, household and microgeneration projects; and
- provide a clear development management framework.
48. Where such updating is likely to be delayed, e.g. where the local plan is recent and no other aspects require updating, planning authorities should either prepare an alteration to the plan or supplementary planning guidance to provide an interim basis for efficient and consistent decision making. Planning authorities should incorporate any non-statutory policies, including established capacities, into their local plans at the next update. Legislative provisions are available to the Scottish Ministers to ensure that development plan policies reflect the guidance in this SPP. Where there is existing supplementary planning guidance, it should be revised in the light of this SPP.
49. Both the development plan and any supplementary planning guidance must satisfy the requirements of Strategic Environmental Assessment ( SEA) and should consider the likely environmental impacts of setting a range of contributions in the area. This process should also examine the environmental impacts associated with new or upgraded grid infrastructure.
50. Some planning authorities may have already progressed work that identifies areas of search for wind farms in their development plans. Such areas should be used in determining proposals until such time as those areas are updated through either the development plan process or supplementary planning guidance. Where there are currently no areas of search, the normal criteria-based approach in development plans, the policies in this SPP and all other material considerations should be taken into account when assessing renewable energy proposals. Planning authorities should continue to determine those applications that are, or come, before them ahead of revised local policies being put in place.
51. Legislation currently before the Scottish Parliament will put in place revised arrangements for preparing development plans. The Executive's proposals would introduce a requirement for the preparation of local development plans throughout Scotland and strategic development plans for only the four largest city regions. The intention will be for local development plans to set out local policies for renewable energy and to consider appropriate contributions at that level. Proposed new procedures for mandatory examinations of all development plans where objections have not been withdrawn will help to ensure that objections are dealt with independently and transparently and that the adopted or approved plan has been thoroughly tested against the policies set out in this SPP.
52. Future alterations to renewable energy policies should be prepared where necessary to take account of progress towards identified local contributions. The Executive's modernising planning policies propose that all local development plans will have to be replaced within 5 years of the date of adoption of the previous plan. This ensures that development plans provide an up-to-date vision for development in the area. Renewable energy policies, including established capacities, should be reviewed in this context.