- The Basque company Haizie wants to install an eight-meter wind turbine in the Alen Mello stand. It belongs to the Fisterra Energy group, belonging to the Blackstone Group bottom vulture network. The project has been submitted to public information by the Administration and the deadline for submitting claims is 13 December. The municipalities concerned are: Artisans, Sopuerta, Galdames, Muskiz, Zalla and Güeñes. The Non-Macrowind platform in the Commissions, among others, has denounced that the Environmental Impact Assessment does not take into account the other projects they want to build and that in total they want to install 24 large wind turbines within a radius of 25 kilometers: "The impact of all these polygons should be considered as a single installation." Faced with this, he has published a document of allegations and called on the citizens to sign it to "achieve popular protection against the industrialization of the mountains".
Having been published in the Official Gazette of the Basque Country, the project has been submitted to public information by the Territorial Delegate of the Industrial Administration of Bizkaia.
The project, called "Artzental Wind Park and its evacuation infrastructure", includes a 49.6 MW wind power plant, composed of eight turbines of 200 meters power each of 6.2 MW. In addition, electrical energy collection and evacuation infrastructures: electrical infrastructure interconnection between wind turbines, substation in the municipality of Sopuerta, connection reduction substation in the municipality of Güeñes, airline of 17.1 km along the municipalities of Artzentales, Sopuerta, Zalla and Güeñes, and underground line of 466 meters in the municipality of Güeñes.
The Non-Macro-Wind Association of the Commissions states: "The project does not respect the minimum distance of 2 km to inhabitable areas and condemns many neighborhoods and dwellings. Nor does it provide sufficient evidence to ensure that the effects of noise and undernoise emitting such turbines over 200 meters high are not harmful to health".
Regarding the condition of the fauna of the area, the following is mentioned: "Criticism for species of protected birds and chiroptera. The submitted wildlife report recognises that all sites affected by the project are the usual flight camp for these birds, at a height of between 50 and 200 metres. He also points out that there are 14 alimoche nests within a radius of 10 km, which according to current regulations makes the construction of this project unfeasible".
Also mentioned are the negative economic impacts of this "industrial project" in the Commissions: "This industry will result in the loss of job opportunities and local entrepreneurship in the Commissions, as stated by the Bank of Spain in its report of 23 January 2023. Moreover, this investment policy runs counter to the long-standing commitment of various local, Community and government programmes to develop the region of the Commissions on rural tourism, agricultural activity and the enhancement of cultural and natural heritage".
Report "fraud" in fractional project submission
The anti-macrowind platform denounces that "the environmental impact assessment does not take into account the synergistic effects of other projects being processed. There are currently four open dossiers, and if they were finally approved, 24 large wind turbines, plus ancillary facilities and evacuation lines within 25 kilometres would be built. The impact of all these polygons should be considered as a single installation, otherwise it would be a fraudulent division."
"Green the expoliation of our resources with the agreement of the administration"
The platform has announced the organisation of conferences and film screenings in the coming months with the aim of "deepening the problem affecting the Enkarerri". But he warns that "this issue is a problem of energy colonialism and financial speculation. In this sense, we work with other affected areas to create a territorial defence network that protects us from speculation of investment funds". It denounces that these projects "tangle the expoliation of our resources with the agreement of the administration".
The claims signed by the citizens will be presented in the Territorial Delegation of the Industrial Administration of Bizkaia in an action "denouncing the macrorenovable model that impoverishes the inhabitants of the regions for the benefit of the large capitals".