EHG4330 - DBA and walkover survey - proposed Strathy North Wind Farm, Farr, Sutherland

A desk based assessment and walkover survey was carried out by CFA Archaeology in March 2005 and February 2006 in advance of a proposed wind farm development scheme at Strathy North Wind Farm, Farr. The field survey was undertaken within the accessible parts of the proposed development area and within a 40m corridor centred on the proposed access route along the existing track and within 100m corridor of any new track. Most of the proposed wind farm area supported dense and impenetrable conifer plantations, which severely restricted the extent to which field survey could be carried out. Unplanted areas principally along burns and within clearings were surveyed wherever accessible and sites identified through the DBA were visited, where possible, to assess their current condition. Five archaeological sites were identified within the area; a pre-clearance township, a farmstead, a group of enclosures, a shieling or shelter and a cairn. A further 32 archaeological sites were identified within the proposed access route corridor. There were no cultural heritage sites with statutory protection within the proposed development area. It was considered that additional buried and unrecorded remains of archaeological significance may survive across the application area and were considered more likely to occur in land bordering the River Strathy where known sites were concentrated. Through iterative design, it was possible to avoid almost all known archaeological sites within the proposed wind farm area. Fourteen sites were predicted to receive direct impacts from the construction of the proposed access route. <1>