It is necessary to investigate the following areas:
1) The potential short and long term effects that buried infrastructure would have on the cultivation of the agricultural land in which it is placed.
2) The effects on inter-species competition in both arable and grassland habitats (e.g. will an increase in temperature favour weed species?).
3) The effects on soil micro-organisms, invertebrates and small mammals which are linked to soil fertility (i.e. will increase temperatures effect invertebrate numbers, both beneficial and pest species).
4) The potential long and short term effects on water tables, ground water, surface water bodies and artificial drainage systems.
5) The verification of effects that the infrastructure may have on different soil and rock types that may be encountered (i.e. clays, sandy loams, peats, sandstones limestones, chalks, granites etc.).
6) The possible mitigation measures that could be adopted to reduce or ameliorate the effects of the infrastructure operating at temperatures of up to 100oC on the ground in which it is located. Options to be considered could include coatings, surrounding the infrastructure with heat absorbing material, burying deeper etc.
7) Other potential effects, not identified above, that buried infrastructure may have on the environment in which it is placed.
Benefits
This project will provide detailed information to allow National Grid to be in a position to influence the design of elements of the transmission infrastructure which create the heat, to minimise environmental and financial risks (such as crop loss and cost avoidance related to Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO)).
