Normandy D-Day wind farm faces fresh UNESCO scrutiny

The new UNESCO status of Normandy’s D-Day beaches has caused renewed scrutiny of a 64-turbine wind farm being built off the Calvados coast.

EDF insists that UNESCO was fully aware of the plan.

The beaches on which Allied forces landed on June 6, 1944, were recently added to the UNESCO World Heritage List.

They include Utah Beach, Omaha Beach, Gold Beach, Sword Beach, Pointe du Hoc and Juno Beach.

Juno Beach most affected

Juno Beach will be most affected by the wind farm, under construction off Courseulles-sur-Mer. It follows the building of a 71-turbine site further east at Fécamp. A third is being built to the east at Dieppe.

Jean-Louis Butré, president of the Fédération Environnement Durable (FED), said UNESCO listing strengthens concerns raised by his organisation and local groups for over a decade.

“The D-Day landing beaches are sacred places,” he told The Connexion. “We cannot ask UNESCO to help protect world heritage while at the same time allowing projects that, in our view, alter these landscapes.”

FED has called on the government to suspend construction, saying the turbines, around 10km offshore, will change the experience of visitors.

“When people visit the beaches, it is first and foremost a place of remembrance,” Mr Butré said. “They come to remember the sacrifice of American, Canadian, British, Australian and other Allied soldiers who came to help liberate Europe.

“You will have wind turbines flashing in front of you.

“It changes the atmosphere of a historic site.”

Mr Butré added that offshore wind farms can also have environmental impacts because of the construction of foundations on the seabed, as well as effects on marine life and birds.

'Memory taken into account'

EDF Power Solutions, a partner in the turbine project, rejects any conflict with the site’s special significance.

“EDF welcomes the inscription of the beaches on the UNESCO World Heritage list,” a spokesman said.

“The teams working on the project have fully taken into account the memory of the D-Day landings.”

EDF said this approach was developed following commitments made after a public debate on the project more than 10 years ago.

A dedicated “History and Duty of Remembrance” group was created, bringing together historians, veterans’ organisations, museums and other representatives involved in preserving World War Two heritage.

As part of this work, the 64 turbines will be named after ships that took part in the D-Day landings and the Battle of Normandy.

The spokesman said: “The existence of the offshore wind farm was taken into account and included in the report of the UNESCO inspector evaluating the site.”

Electricity and jobs

The Calvados wind farm will have a total capacity of around 450 megawatts, producing the equivalent of the domestic electricity consumption of more than 630,000 people – more than 90% of the Calvados department’s population.

The turbines will be located off the Bessin coastline across an area of around 50km².

EDF said the project’s footprint on the seabed will represent less than 1% of this area.

The company also predicts economic benefits for the region, with more than 1,000 jobs created during construction and around 100 permanent positions linked to a future maintenance base at the port of Caen-Ouistreham.

Wind farm to be dismantled in 2057

The project forms part of a wider expansion of offshore wind power in France.

The government has put out tenders for 10 new wind farms, which could bring the country’s total offshore wind capacity to 15GW by 2035 if all go ahead.

UNESCO’s recommendation regarding the wind farm is that it should be dismantled at the end of its concession, in 2057, and the site restored to its original condition.

This is not, however, a legal order to stop the project or remove the turbines.

For now, despite UNESCO recognition, and continued opposition from several associations, the wind farm project is moving ahead.