Pen y Cymoedd wind farm wins Considerate Constructors Scheme award7th Apr 2015

The Pen y Cymoedd Wind Energy Project has won a national award that recognises efforts made by the construction industry to be considerate neighbours.

The windfarm project has won a Considerate Constructors Scheme award, recognising the efforts of the project’s developers to be sympathetic to the local community.

Joint venture partners Jones Bros and Balfour Beatty are currently on site at Pen y Cymoedd delivering infrastructure on behalf of wind farm developer Vattenfall.

The awards judge construction projects on five criteria to determine whether site teams have acted in a responsible and considerate way towards local residents and site users.

Workers were judged on their care about site appearance, respect for the community, efforts to protect the environment, site safety and valuing the site workforce. Judges said that the wind farm site “demonstrates hallmarks of the highest standards within the construction industry”, and that the initiatives put in place “can only enhance the image of the construction industry.”

Eryl Roberts, project manager for the joint venture, said the award recognised the efforts of all workers on site to respect the local community.

“We’re very pleased to receive this award, particularly given the efforts of everyone working on the project to be considerate of the communities around the construction site.”

The project was judged as being exceptional in the efforts of site staff to respect the local community, protect the environment and adhere to safety guidelines. Judging also highlighted the innovative installation of a small-scale sewage treatment plant to deal with compound waste.

Eryl said: “Usually you would have waste collected in large tanks, which are taken away on a weekly basis by a tractor, which has a negative environmental impact. Instead, we installed a small-scale temporary sewage treatment plant, which needs to be cleaned once a year and is much more environmentally friendly.

“The report also commended the site for installing a protective fence around a memorial site, making considerable efforts to ensure the health and wellbeing of the workforce, and efforts to engage with the local community.”

Representatives from the project will receive the award at a ceremony held at The Lowry gallery in Salford, Manchester, on April 14.

Once operational, Pen y Cymoedd Wind Energy Project will be the largest onshore wind farm in England and Wales, generating enough electricity to power around 140,000 homes.