On BalticWind.EU we reported that Šarūnas Vaitkus, the mayor of the Lithuanian town of Palanga, addressed the state authorities with a letter on concerns about the development of offshore wind farms. Vaitkus was met by representatives of the Lithuanian energy ministry, who came to Palanga.
Local politicians are concerned about the negative impact of offshore wind turbines on the landscape and recreational and tourist potential. There are also questions about the impact of RES installations on shipping. “We strongly disagree!” – Vaitkus stressed in the letter. The mayor fears that offshore wind farms in the Baltic Sea will negatively affect the development of local tourism. The mayor asked the state authorities, including the Prime Minister Ingrid Šimonytė, and the Energy and Environment Ministers, to ensure that the planned offshore wind farms in Lithuania would not be visible from the land and would not negatively impact the landscape of the Baltic Sea.
Palanga municipality informed that the Minister of Energy, Dainius Kreivys, responded to the issue raised by the local community and the Lithuanian Union of Landscape Architects regarding the impact on the landscape of the wind farm planned to be built in the sea off the coast of Palanga. On October 29, the Minister and Deputy Minister, Daiva Garbaliauskaitė, visited the city of Palanga and met with the resort’s Mayor, Šarūnas Vaitkus. The Minister of Energy has assured that additional assessments will be carried out to look in detail at the impact of possible visual pollution, and that every effort will be made to ensure that wind turbines are not visible from shore.
It was agreed that detailed landscape studies will be prepared and that these documents will be made public in Palanga, so that the whole country has an opportunity to get acquainted with them and have their questions answered.
