The Salinetas and Salinetas II solar parks obtain the Seal of Excellence in Sustainability
Published: 15th March 2023
Esparity Solar’s Salinetas and Salinetas II projects, each with an installed capacity of 50 MWp, have been awarded the Seal of Excellence in Sustainability by the Spanish Photovoltaic Union (UNEF). Located in the municipalities of Novelda and Monóvar respectively, in the northwest of the province of Alicante, both solar parks have biodiversity protection and conservation measures and outstanding socio-economic policies that benefit the populations of each site
Low environmental impact on the surroundings
The high-quality standards of the Salinetas and Salinetas II projects have been recognised by UNEF with the Seal of Excellence in Sustainability, as they incorporate effective environmental measures to protect the ecosystem of both areas and their biodiversity.
Both solar parks have hunting fences with subways that allow the transit of local fauna and strips of vegetation for proper landscape integration. They also have favourable studies of birdlife with a complete annual cycle and additional measures for the protection and conservation of the fauna, such as the implementation of nesting boxes, shelters for rodents and reptiles, ponds and insect hotels, as well as the placement of five apiaries, which means a total of 250 beehives producing 100% organic honey.
In addition, as a result of the grazing of livestock by local farmers, the cleaning of the land where the photovoltaic installation is located, and its surroundings, will not have to be carried out using machinery or chemicals that are highly harmful to the soil.
Socio-economic and environmental benefits
The Salinetas and Salinetas II projects will also bring numerous socio-economic and environmental benefits to Novelda, Monóvar and their adjacent municipalities. Once operational, the facilities will contribute to the reduction of 120,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions into the atmosphere and will produce green energy that will supply more than 58,000 Spanish households. The construction and maintenance of both wind farms will generate around 400 direct and indirect jobs locally.
Following the line of dialogue, the projects were subjected in their respective municipalities to a Public Participation Plan, based on the LOTUP (Law on land management, urban planning and landscape), which aimed to learn first-hand the concerns and needs of the inhabitants of the area and adapt the project to generate the greatest possible social benefit.
As indicated in the regulations (Decree-Law 14/2020, of 7 August, of the Consell), the company undertakes to dismantle the photovoltaic plants at the end of their lifecycle, returning the land to its previous original state, and is therefore a temporary occupation of land that is fully reversible.
The projects have an overhead line section and an underground section, which is an advantage when it comes to reducing the level of landscape impact of the evacuation infrastructures, as they already have access and connection permits shared with other developers. The Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge considers the location of the Salinetas and Salinetas II projects to be of very low environmental sensitivity, with an average index of practically 10, with 1 being the highest value and 10 the lowest possible. This figure shows that both projects have little environmental impact on the environment.
Five projects now with the Seals of Sustainability
With the recent addition of Salinetas and Salinetas II to the list, there are now five Esparity Solar projects in total which have been awarded the UNEF Seal of Excellence in Sustainability. The other three projects are Cordovilla, Safarich and Serol. However, the company’s intention is that all future installations in the pipeline will also meet the high-quality standards of this seal.
The Seal of Excellence in Sustainability promoted by UNEF recognises photovoltaic solar farm projects carried out in compliance with the best standards in terms of social and environmental integration; based on two phases: assessment and inspection when the plant is already in operation.
Published by solarinfo.es