Allen Archaeology is undertaking a series of geoarchaeological investigations during this and next week as part of onshore survey works on the Triton Knoll offshore wind farm.
The surveys will examine specific sites at locations along the onshore route of the Triton Knoll onshore cable corridor, looking for buried materials or deposits which may be of archaeological and environmental significance.
Small teams will be walking the route and using a hand-auger at specific locations to hand-dig small sample areas. Depending on the findings, some additional survey work may follow at a smaller number of specific locations, and using additional sampling equipment and machinery. The results should help Triton Knoll finalise its designs for the best approach to delivering the onshore cabling works.
Landowners have been fully engaged throughout the survey works, which is expected to have a very limited impact on the surrounding environment, the developer said.
In addition to these surveys, Allen Archaeology is continuing to undertake a programme of archaeological trial trenching along the route of the onshore cable route and at the onshore substation site.
In October, the company also carried out a series of rapid walkover surveys at selected locations along the route of the Triton Knoll onshore cable corridor.
The 860MW Triton Knoll offshore wind farm will be located approximately 32km off the Lincolnshire coast and 50km off the coast of North Norfolk, UK, and will feature 90 MHI Vestas 9.5MW offshore wind turbines.
The wind farm started off as a 50%-50% partnership between innogy and Statkraft. However, innogy agreed to buy Statkraft’s 50% stake after the project reaches the financial investment decision (FID).
After the FID, expected mid-2018, the onshore construction will start almost immediately, with offshore construction scheduled to commence in 2020.