Online Consultation Mechanism for Wind Energy Projects

Topics: Energy Transition and Climate-Neutral Buildings

Countries: Greece Latvia Poland

The online consultation tool developed during the Wind4Bio project was presented to 63 participants. These included regional representatives as well as stakeholders from the private sector, local communities, and NGOs who attended three national workshops in Greece, Latvia, and Poland. The utilization of the tool will help environmental and civil society organizations to identify biodiversity threats during the life cycle of wind energy projects. The consultation mechanism allows an earlier identification of biodiversity threats, leading to a more effective and proactive risk mitigation strategy, through the involvement of local communities and environmental NGOs in monitoring and mitigating the impact of wind farms on biodiversity. As a result, the consultation mechanism is expected to increase transparency and curb local opposition to wind energy projects by making civil society an integral part of wind energy planning and biodiversity preservation. Following the workshops, the online mechanism will be pilot tested by Region of Western Greece Region in Greece and Zemgale Planning Region in Latvia, in the framework of the Interreg Europe project BIOWIND.