Both EU and national legislation prescribe specific procedures to assess the impacts (including cumulative) of wind energy projects in the context of environmental licensing in order to ensure that climate targets for clean energy are achieved in harmony with the protection of biodiversity as well as the important habitats and species. However, in practice the interpretation and application of the legislation present difficulties and challenges.

Understanding these challenges, the Society for the Protection of Biodiversity of Thrace, organised and implemented three seminars on the legal framework regarding the environmental licensing of wind farms on June 5th, 6th and 7th, 2023 in Alexandroupoli, Komotini and Xanthi, aimed at employees from licensing authorities and public bodies/services that deliver opinions.

Through an interactive process of examining virtual case-studies of wind farms licensing, role-switching and discussion, the participants analysed issues such as:

• In which cases is required proper assessment of the impacts of wind energy projects in the context of environmental licensing and what are the main elements of this?
• On the basis of which criteria the licensing authority can establish that a project has been "sliced" in order to circumvent environmental legislation?
• What is the application of the new regulation 2022/2577 of the European Council for the acceleration of RES projects in the context of the wind farms environmental licensing process in Greece?
• How should the cumulative impacts be evaluated during environmental licensing?
• How can Administration’s decisions be “shielded” against administrative appeals and annulment requests at the Council of State?

During the seminar, some of the complex issues were clarified, however some others remain complex due to the poor integration of European legislation into national legislation and also the lack of clear guidance. The seminars were attended by 50 representatives from the Region of Eastern Macedonia - Thrace, the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia - Thrace, the forestry services and N.E.C.C.A.

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The seminars were organised by SPBT as part of of WWF Greece initiative for the protection of emblematic species of Greece