Solar “farms” have featured in several articles on Cliscep, including John’s “Birdaggedon 3” and my own “Solar Giant Parks on Kent’s Lawn.”
Solar Giant talks about the project that began life as “Cleve Hill” and became “Project Fortress,” presumably as the irate locals started to grab their pitchforks. It was a nominal 350 MW with a footprint of 360 ha. They are expecting it to be sunny in Kent, because the typical ratio of land to power for solar farms is 2 ha : 1 MW. (According to Biofuelwatch via the NFU, and based on inspection of some planned schemes).
As I may have mentioned at some point, solar developers treat 50 MW (= c. 100 ha = 250 acres) as an important threshold. Once your project reaches 50 MW, it becomes nationally significant, and you have to go through more onerous planning procedures. Below that level (they love 49.9 MW for some reason…) you might get lucky and get the go-ahead from the local planning authority.
I decided to see how many Cleve Hills / Project Fortresses were in train, and so visited the Planning Inspectorate website to find out.
You can usefully apply filters, etc.
In so doing, I found 34 solar schemes in the works that exceed 50 MW (actually, the smallest is 100 MW). I was rather surprised to see that Cleve Hill is rather more than a troll than a giant: it ranks only 22nd in power. The biggest is the 840 MW Botley West Solar Farm. On our rule of thumb, this will cover 1680 ha, or if you prefer that metric, about 2,400 football pitches. It might do a bit better than that, because of the 34, it’s one of the most southerly.
This map shows the locations of the 34, and the circles are in proportion to each scheme’s size (not to scale). Together the 34 would have a nominal power of 14.7 GW (nothing at night). And there are a lot of 49.9 MW schemes to add to that. (The one Mark noted as rejected on the Birdaggedon 3 thread, Radlett Green, was 49.9 MW. It was rejected by the local planning authority in 2021 and the developer appealed to the Planning Inspectorate. It’s a rational move for a developer to have a punt at an appeal, given the amount of dosh that they have sunk into the proposal.)
Three of the schemes have been consented: Cleve Hill (2020); Little Crow (2022); and Longfield (2023). Decisions for three others are pending, and the rest are at various stages, many yet to submit planning proposals.
I provide this overview for interest. If I find the time, I will look at some of the sites in more detail. I am particularly interested of course in how they deal with matters ecological. My guess is that I will find much to disagree with in their Environmental Statements.
As far as I know, all the proposed developments have their own websites. For some reason, the developers’ preferred metric is how many houses their panels can power. It’s sometimes rather hard to find out how much land their scheme is going to cover. That though, you may be unsurprised to learn, is the preferred metric of the organised opposition groups, of which there are at least a few (I haven’t looked in detail yet).
Personally, I think solar PV at our latitude, with our weather, is a crazy plan. One in which the metric is not electrons flowing out of the farm, but greenbacks flowing into it’s owners’ pockets. But then, I’m an old cynic.
Solar and Britain: the perfect choice for a country “insane, and unsure of itself.”
Featured Image
Nothing to do with Britain. What happens when solar panels meet a hurricane (US Virgin Islands, via FEMA here).
Climate Scepticism 
Thanks, Jit, a useful summary of the latest developments in the ongoing attempt to trash what is left of our once green and pleasant land.
I very much agree that at our latitude and with our climate, relying on large-scale solar makes even less sense than relying on wind farms.
This, I hope you agree, is a useful place to report on further developments.
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JIT, you are not alone. Consider the track record in the US southwest, where sunshine abounds.
In short, solar has not been shining very bright since it came on the scene in the ’70s. Indeed, even in the sun-drenched Southwest, solar has proven inefficient, unreliable, and — when all costs are considered — expensive. That should be a warning:
If it struggles here, in ideal conditions, how well
can it be expected to perform in the rest of the country?
https://rclutz.com/2023/01/09/southwestern-solar-bright-shining-disappointment/
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But why? When we lived near San Francisco (other side of the Bay) we installed rooftop solar water heating. We never regretted it. I was moved to Dallas so we didn’t get the full benefit but it added value when we sold our house. We would do the same again, but eastern England doesn’t get sufficient sunshine.
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Jit – thanks for the post & solar resource map above. just shows how useless solar resources are in the UK. wonder why Chile comes out as a hot spot (no pun intended)?
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ps – from your post pic, wonder what happens to any lecy cables running from that devastated solar farm? from the bottom right we see a sign “danger high voltage”!!!
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Ron, I think you can safely say that solar panels in England are not going to perform as well as they do in California.
Alan, there are reasons why what might be good for us personally might not be so good generally. Having solar panels may well be a good idea for individual households, and they become ever more viable under present conditions: increasingly expensive electricity and increasingly cheap panels thanks to over supply. But they may act parasitically on the system as a whole, unless the demand is synchronised with the generation – which it most emphatically is not in the UK.
Dougie, there is another photo somewhere from a year or two later with a rather post-apocalyptic feel about it. The panels have now been replaced I think, or certainly tidied up. I guess they may well still be live in that shot, but you could always disconnect them at night.
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The later photo can be seen here:
https://8billiontrees.com/solar-panels/solar-panel-damage-from-hail/
Scroll down quite a long way.
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Jit, At the risk of being pedantic, the 50MW output level changes the ground rules. 50MW and above, and the application is for a power station, and so comes under the 1989 Electricity Act, and usually falls under s36 of that Act. All a consequence of the miners strike.
So here in Scotland the application goes to the Energy Consents Unit of the Scottish Government, who to some degree then make the decisions. However, the application has to be referred to the local planning authority as “consultees” and also to lesser mortals such as nearby community councils, and a host of other statutory bodies such as SEPA, Nature Scotland etc etc. If the Local Authority (the Planning Committee) decide to object, the Act stipulates that there “must” be a PLI.
After the planning inquiry, Scottish Ministers review the Reporter’s decision, and decide whether to endorse it, or occasionally, overrule it. It’s not just Solar Arrays now— also numerous BESS units, where the notional output is above 50MW. Local opinions get lost in the process — as types like CCs and local objectors are told to make their comments to ECU and NOT to the Local Authority (in many areas, it varies a bit). This is because ECU is the deciding body, and the LA is just another consultee, we are told time and again….. not a happy subject. the clue is in the name — Energy CONSENTS Unit.
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Thanks Jit – a timely reminder that solar farms above 45degN are as purposeful as a chocolate fireguard – in the UK, if it weren’t for taxpayer & consumer funding via subsidies, CfDs etc, there would be zero business case for them, commercially or technically
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Jit – thanks for the pic update – looks like that solar site has just been left to rot.
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Jit- from your 2nd link –
“If you’re unlucky enough to live in an area that is prone to hailstorms and are concerned for the well-being of your expensive solar panels there are several options available.
Here are 5 that might just prevent your panels from getting a few facial scars.
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California’s degenerating duck curve, the removal of subsidies and job losses in solar at Jo Nova.
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Dougie, I get the feeling that they were being a bit cheeky in using a field of panels damaged by a hurricane as support for the damage that hailstones might cause.
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Jit – wonder what happens when it rains cats & dogs (prompted by post by Tony:-)
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I note that the exceptional rainfall that occurred earlier this week in The UAE, where the equivalent of one and a half year’s rainfall fell between Monday night and Tuesday evening (so clearly weather) is officially described as a “climate event”.
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Alan,
Some notes:
Cloud-seeding operations preceded the storms. Their potential impact has to be allowed for:
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/cloud-seeding-global-warming-what-caused-widespread-flooding-and-brought-dubai-to-a-grinding-halt/articleshow/109364695.cms
It is normal for a year’s worth of rain to fall in one day in that region. It’s how the local weather works.
Every time it happens, it floods. Dubai has no storm drainage system.
They say this is unprecedented but records only go back to 1949.
The rest is just standard extreme weather event attribution science. Cue Prof. Otto.
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Interesting John, those clouds must have been absolutely “loaded for bear”. Then to attribute the rainfall to “climate” makes this attribution so utterly ludicrous. Someone’s head will roll. Hopefully the 🌦️ “climate” forecaster.
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Suspect widespread nature of the rain (affecting Oman and Bahrain as well as the UAE) suggests it was not caused by cloud seeding. Rain reported to have affected Oman first and UAE issued “climate”/weather warning before being drenched.
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Alan,
Indeed, the weathermen had forecast the storms, but someone went up and seeded regardless. I don’t think anyone should be saying the seeding ’caused’ anything, but it either works or it doesn’t, and if it does then it may have a bearing on how severe the rainfall could have been in at least some of the areas. On balance, however, I don’t think too much should be made of it.
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As was mentioned in the BBC weather report (I think) – “last time this happened was 75yrs ago”
reported with the usual mantra “it will get worse climate scientists say “good news for Aquifers in the region thou”
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Sigh – Unprecedented has become so precedented.
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“Call to spread UK solar farms ‘more evenly'”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cj5l5zldvdpo
Concerns have been raised that some villages in Wiltshire are now “completely surrounded” by solar farms.
Wiltshire Council will vote on whether to call on the government to ensure that solar farms are “more evenly spread across the UK” and “not concentrated in specific areas effectively industrialising the countryside” due to concerns.
The vote comes weeks after the public consultation behind what would be one of the biggest solar farms in the country ended.
Conservative councillors Phil Alford and Nick Botterill said a concentration of solar farms represents a “significant cumulative impact”….
…The motion also states: “We would also ask for clarity of the priority given to ensuring that food production and farming are not destroyed as industries in specific areas through an excessive concentration of solar farms given the massive impact that would have on the rural way of life in villages that have been farmed for time immemorial.”
There are more than 40 working solar farms in the county and numerous others under construction or going through the planning process.
In November 2023, campaigners called on Wiltshire Council to pause the developments.
Developers Island Green Power wants to build solar panels on 2,000 acres of farmland across six villages in Wiltshire in the Lime Down Solar Park project.
More than 14,000 people, including farmers and residents, have signed a petition against the plans.
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Also this opinion piece by Jamie Blackett in the Telegraph:
“This solar panel con will destroy our farms”
On the minor policy tweaks that mean other things than Net Zero have to be taken into consideration when the SoS decides solar farm planning applications.
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Interesting article , well worth a read.
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“It’s just too big’: division over plans for UK’s biggest solar farm
Solar projects such as Botley West in Oxfordshire are latest net zero schemes bogged down by local disputes”
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/article/2024/jun/07/plans-uk-biggest-solar-farm-botley-west-oxfordshire
…Large-scale solar farms have become the latest net zero technology to be bogged down by local disputes and polarising debates across the country. A growing coalition of grassroots groups argue that the ballooning pipeline of solar developments would “armour-plate” the countryside, destroy good farmland and threaten food security. Instead, they want to see solar “in the right places”, on rooftops and brownfield sites...
To decarbonise the electricity system, the Conservative government said it would increase solar capacity nearly fivefold to 70GW by 2035 and called for “large-scale ground-mounted solar deployment across the UK” – one of the cheapest [sic] forms of electricity generation. To balance energy security and food production, it told developers to prioritise poorer-quality land and avoid using the best farmland for large projects “where possible”.
The Botley West proposal goes to the heart of the issue. The solar farm would cost £950m to build on land predominantly leased by the Blenheim estate, 38% of which is considered “best and most versatile” agricultural land. Campaigners have been lobbying the government to change the rules and restrict large-scale solar on farmland even of moderate quality….
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“National park solar farm plan turned down”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cl44kvvkll2o
Quite right too. The appalling thing is that developers ever thought it worthwhile applying to industrialise a 9.85 hectare site within a national park.
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“Labour energy chief Ed Miliband faces local solar backlash
Labour’s energy secretary has big goals for ramping up U.K. solar power. But first he has to deal with protests in his own backyard.”
https://www.politico.eu/article/labour-energy-chief-ed-miliband-faces-local-solar-farm-backlash/
Miliband, Labour’s shadow energy secretary, did not respond to requests for comment, but campaigners against the solar farm say that he has confirmed his support for the development. Documents published by the developer Boom Power said the firm has had “positive” discussions with Miliband as part of its engagement work, including a briefing on the proposals in June last year.
“I am not going to vote for Ed Miliband … I have got two issues with Ed Miliband, one with Brexit and one with this [solar farm],” a resident and Labour member, Stephen Fowle, told POLITICO, as campaigners met on Friday to oppose the project.
Another local voter, Christine Teal, said she, too, opposed Miliband because of the scheme. “It’s breaking my heart, but yes,” she said, when asked if she would withhold her vote from Labour.
“I wouldn’t vote for him,” said a third voter at the campaign meeting. A Facebook group set up to organize against the solar farm has more than 70 members...
…Miliband has intervened on behalf of constituents to preserve public walkways on the Fenwick site. “But for us as a campaign group that is wanting it stopped, full stop, it’s not a great big help that your MP is absolutely 110 percent behind it,” Fowle said….
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‘I don’t want an industrial site where cows used to be’: The farmers under threat from solar developers
Telegraph.
Unfortunately, the opposition to solar farms is fragmented, and the main line taken seems to be, “We are all aware of the necessity of net zero, and are in favour of solar farms… just not in our back yard.”
This is not a strategy with any chance of success. Opposition divided is opposition conquered. A strategy that might just work is to oppose them everywhere, and to propose a viable alternative with a far smaller footprint.
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The man seems to be on a mission to vandalise the UK’s precious countryside at top speed.
“Labour’s ‘rooftop revolution’ to deliver solar power to millions of UK homes
Ed Miliband sets new rules on solar panels and approves three giant solar farms as Labour seeks to end years of Tory inaction”
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/article/2024/jul/13/labours-rooftop-revolution-to-deliver-solar-power-to-millions-of-uk-homes
Keir Starmer’s new Labour government today unveils plans for a “rooftop revolution” that will see millions more homes fitted with solar panels in order to bring down domestic energy bills and tackle the climate crisis.
The energy secretary, Ed Miliband, also took the hugely controversial decision this weekend to approve three massive solar farms in the east of England that had been blocked by Tory ministers.
The three sites alone – Gate Burton in Lincolnshire, Sunnica’s energy farm on the Suffolk-Cambridgeshire border and Mallard Pass on the border between Lincolnshire and Rutland – will deliver about two-thirds of the solar energy installed on rooftops and on the ground in the whole of last year.…
...Miliband, who has promised to triple the amount of solar power in the UK by 2030, as well as double onshore wind and quadruple offshore wind, said on Saturday night: “I want to unleash a UK solar rooftop revolution. We will encourage builders and homeowners in whatever way we can to deliver this win-win technology to millions of addresses in the UK so people can provide their own electricity, cut their bills and at the same time help fight climate change.”
His officials insisted the new government was showing its willingness to “take on the Nimbys” as part of the fight against the climate crisis....
...Miliband’s rapid moves on solar power were hailed by UK energy experts, who said they would speedily rectify a huge imbalance in the use of renewable energy in Britain...
...However, the decisions have caused local outcries. The Tory MP for Rutland and Stamford, Alicia Kearns, said she was “utterly appalled” by Miliband’s decision to give the go-ahead to the Mallard Pass farm.
The government hit back, saying the move was justified on the grounds it will provide clean energy to power about 92,000 homes over the next 60 years.
Opening the door to more large solar power farms will have to be quickly followed by improvements to the National Grid, experts also say. “We need to think urgently about how we transmit and distribute electricity,” added Srivastav. “The demand for power is only going to go up as we electrify society and if we cannot get electricity to where it needs to be, we will be in an untenable situation.”
Well, they got that last bit right.
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“Approval given for ‘silent neighbour’ solar farm”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4ng9dzy18xo
Plans for a 77-hectare solar farm that will border three sides of a property have been approved.
West Northamptonshire Council’s planning committee gave the green light for the solar farm to be built on six empty fields west of Welford, on the Northamptonshire-Leicestershire border….
…The developer said the solar panels would generate up to 49.9MW of energy, which would power about 14,500 homes...
...Welford Solar Farms director Tim Hancock said: “We do, however, recognise that a proposal for a large project in a rural area results in some significant change locally.
“We can only locate solar farms where a suitable land area is available and where there is a sufficient grid capacity….”…”
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We might start to see a lot more of this:
“Local authority to challenge solar farm approval”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c74j8zdzy1eo
A council has criticised the government’s decision to approve a £600m energy farm and said it is beginning judicial review proceedings against it.
Suffolk County Council said it has written a pre-action protocol letter, external to the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Ed Miliband, after he approved the Sunnica solar farm on the Suffolk-Cambridgeshire border last month.
The council believes Mr Miliband ignored its funding arguments and said this will amount to “considerable” additional work and costs for the Conservative-led authority.
The department for energy security and net zero said it would not comment on a live planning case...
It’s pleasing to see, but perhaps the Councillors haven’t read their own climate emergency declaration?
https://www.suffolk.gov.uk/planning-waste-and-environment/initiatives/our-climate-emergency-declaration
It includes this:
We will work with government to:
It looks as though the Council’s hubris is biting it hard now. Did it not work out that its own declaration of a climate emergency would involve it in additional work and costs? This is what happens when local politicians prioritise virtue-signalling ahead of common sense.
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“Solar power divides Warwickshire’s farmers”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ckg59w558n3o
Given some of the pictures I have seen of solar farms, this claim – which is continually pushed by their supporters – seems a bit of a stretch:
Solar panels…can sit alongside sheep grazing and crops.
They can, yes, but by how much does a standard solar farm reduce grazing and crop-growing land? BY quite a lot, I suspect.
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“Survey suggests opposition to major solar farm”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gelnmmzj7o
A consultation about a major solar farm in Nottinghamshire has shown the scale of the opposition it faces to being built.
Planned for an area north-west of Newark, the Great North Road Solar Park has the potential to power up to 400,000 homes – the equivalent to all of the homes in the county.
The consultation, held in January and February, found 54% of respondents opposed the scheme, with 16% supporting the current plan.
Among the main reasons people gave for opposing the scheme were its visual and ecological impact….
Two observations from me. First, what’s the betting it gets built despite the opposition? Secondly, isn’t it time the BBC stopped using misleading press release information from the developers?
…has the potential to power up to 400,000 homes…
Given that solar nameplate capacity in the UK is many times what it actually generates, this sort of claim could reasonably be described as misinformation, IMO. The BBC should not be doing it.
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“Fears solar farm will look like ‘ocean of panels'”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cly9n70g4ypo
Building another big solar farm in a Cornish village would create the impression of an “ocean” on the landscape, local people have argued.
Cornwall Council is due to consider a 200 acre site at Canworthy Water near Launceston at its strategic planning committee meeting on Thursday.
There is already a solar farm in the village and residents have said they have already taken their fair share of panels.…
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“Europe’s biggest solar farm ‘could desecrate fens'”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crmwjkj73lgo
Campaigners opposed to a large solar energy project have warned it would cause significant damage to communities and the landscape of southern Lincolnshire.
The Meridian Solar Farm could become the biggest development of its kind in Europe, generating electricity for more than 200,000 homes, if it gets the go-ahead from the UK government.
Meridian Solar has said it hopes to meet “the urgent need for cleaner forms of generation to replace fossil fuels”.
However. one opponent, Stuart Gibbard, said he feared it would “desecrate” a “unique” fenland landscape.
If approved, the facility would cover an area the size of 1,400 football pitches on land to the south of Spalding.
Mr Gibbard, an agricultural historian living near the village of Moulton Chapel, described the area as “one of the most unspoilt” areas of fenland left in England and warned that it could be lost forever...
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‘Desecrate’ and ‘unique’ are apt descriptions. I know that area intimately and have travelled its highways and byways (and footpaths) for several years, in all weathers and all seasons. It is unique, quiet, idyllic English countryside, and there are large stretches of prime farmland interspersed with areas of wild fen. I’m crying inside at the potential industrial vandalization of such beauty on the basis of a corporate global money making scam.
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Mark, Jaime,
The way you two are going on you’d think that solar farms are a source of habitat loss and a threat to biodiversity. I read this article and I immediately wanted a solar farm built on the field at the bottom of our road:
New solar farms can benefit nature – here’s how
https://theconversation.com/new-solar-farms-can-benefit-nature-heres-how-235991
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Is opposition to solar panels on farmland now ‘anti-establishment rhetoric’? If so, we could all soon be arrested.
https://x.com/darrengrimes_/status/1823844755245068449
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Hey Jaime, did you just get tweet embedding working there?
Indeed it seems to be back!
(Sorry that isn’t on topic for the thread.)
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We may be going off topic on this thread (apologies, Jit), but here’s the link to the BBC article that talks about someone being in Court (apparently) for (inter alia) expressing “anti-establishment rhetoric”:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy9elrjpry0o
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The Free Speech Union is onto it
Choosing Bernie Spofforth seems a wise move, from everything I’ve read. Others may be able to get free legal advice by phone. One supporter, for balance, points to the legal points made here
Ditto to Jit on topicality. But thanks for Jaime for the spot.
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Jaime,
According to the BBC:
The court heard Mr O’Rourke had allegedly expressed support for the recent riots and offered advice on how to remain anonymous to his 90,000 followers.
Lincoln man charged with stirring up racial hatred online – BBC News
The last time I looked, wishing to remain anonymous was a legitimate ambition, unless it is intended to evade identification whilst committing an offence. So to suggest that O’Rourke’s technical advice amounts to complicity, you have to assume that he knew that offences were going to be committed under the anonymity he was facilitating. Is that a fair assumption? I suppose it depends upon whether he is expecting it to be used to allow more ‘hate speech’ or just ‘anti-establishment rhetoric’. Except, of course, there is the worry that such rhetoric should also be seen by the courts as a crime, much as it is in Hongkong.
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Richard, my attempt to embed tweets still does not work. What I did above is I copied the tweet text and copied the image and then pasted both into the comment. The pasted tweet http address did not embed however.
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Jaime: Good timing as I was just trying to solve another problem, with my embed of the FSU tweet above. See Tech Notes
Long story short: I don’t know! But it seems to be almost right for me. Today 🙂
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Not a giant solar farm, but one which sounds even more inappropriate than most:
“Decision looms on plans for solar panel farm”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y8kk27llko
Plans for a solar farm in East Sussex are set to go in front of councillors next week.
Eastbourne Borough Council’s planning committee will consider proposals to build a solar farm, battery energy storage system and associated infrastructure, on land south of Cross Levels Way, in Eastbourne.
Planning officers have recommended the project is approved, subject to conditions, but 114 letters of objection have been submitted due to concerns around the archaeological, ecological and visual importance of the site....
…The land has been allocated within Eastbourne’s local plan as a suitable location for renewable energy infrastructure, but is also a designated local wildlife site, within an archaeological notification area and a functional flood plain….
A battery storage system on a flood plain? Yes, that sounds like a great idea.
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Update from that last comment. Guess what?
“Solar farm in Eastbourne approved”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp9r485k40po
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A long article, worth a read, to see the tensions now on display:
“Councils withdraw from solar farm legal action”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp9r4k87gx5o
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“Food or solar? Farmers divided over land use”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4geq9v60kro
Should rural land be used to produce food or energy? It is a question that divides farmers nationwide, and is being debated on the Somerset Levels.
On ancient grazing pastures steel and silicon solar panels are being installed, taking thousands of acres of farmland out of food production.
Across the country, the new Energy Security Secretary, Ed Miliband, has already approved three huge controversial developments, covering 6,200 acres (2,500 hectares) of farmland.
And while some farmers see solar as offering financial stability, others fear the loss of the land that feeds us….
…Every week, Sam Small and her family turn down thousands of pounds of guaranteed income. They farm 400 acres on the Somerset Levels, five miles west of Glastonbury.
When I visited her by the immaculate cow sheds, the sun was out – and she could earn a healthy income from that solar power.
Mrs Small showed me a stack of adverts and emails the family have received.
“We get plenty of emails saying, ‘Make a thousand pounds an acre from your land!’ They’re everywhere now.”
If they rented out just a 10th of their land to a solar energy firm, they could earn £40,000 a year.
For 30 years.
For doing nothing.
But Mrs Small just laughs at the idea.
“Very tempting,” she smiles, “but 10% of our land will also feed these cows. You have to look at the bigger picture.
“We produce nearly two million litres of milk a year, and that is what we intend to carry on doing.”…
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I suspect we’ll be seeing a lot more of this sort of thing:
“Major solar project given go-ahead by government”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crkm5p1x6deo
A major solar farm project in Lincolnshire has been given the go-ahead by Energy Secretary Ed Miliband despite local objections to the plan.
The 600MW Cottam Solar Project, which will be located east of Willingham by Stow in West Lindsey, was granted development consent on Thursday, the government announced.
Local councillors had previously rejected the plans, citing concerns over the impact it would have on farmland and traffic and a lack of supporting infrastructure.
However, Mr Miliband said: “Solar is one of the cheapest sources of power and we must take advantage of the clean and secure energy.”
The project will consist off four ground-mounted solar energy generating stations, four sub-stations, a battery energy storage system and associated infrastructure.
The proposed development will be spread across four separate sites which lie across Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire.…
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“Technology helping solar farms counter growing hailstone threat
With storms becoming more frequent due to the climate crisis, insurers are forcing operators to respond”
https://www.theguardian.com/news/article/2024/sep/13/technology-helping-solar-farms-counter-growing-hailstone-threat
One of the least considered hazards of climate change is the increasing frequency of hailstorms and the size and the impact of the pieces of ice they produce. This, in turn, threatens one of the most promising solutions to the climate crisis: solar farms.
In the last year, the number of hailstorms in Europe exceeded 10,000 and the size of large hailstones reported from Italy and Germany increased to 10cm (4in) – enough to dent a car, smash greenhouses and break a solar panel. The frequency of storms and the size of the hail is increasing.
In Texas, where hailstones come even bigger, baseball-sized holes have been knocked in solar panels, causing large-scale damage…..
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“‘I don’t want this to be the last harvest'”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx2g2jdkrp0o
A near four-year battle that has seen a North Yorkshire tenant farmer try to stop a solar farm being built on the land he works is going to a public inquiry.
Rob Sturdy and his wife Emma fear the 280-acre Eden Farm in Old Malton, owned by the Fitzwilliam Trust Corporation, would become unviable as a business if the plans went ahead….
They don’t help themselves, IMO, by saying this:
Mrs Sturdy said she accepted there needed to be more use of renewable energy, and she did not oppose the building of solar farms.
But she said: “They need to be built in the right place….
...”This – a viable tenanted farm – with high-quality agricultural land, is the wrong place for a solar farm.”….
We won’t stop the tsunami of renewable energy applications until we succeed in pointing out that it isn’t necessary. I am tired of reading about people saying they support it in principle, just not near me. You won’t win by doing that.
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Solar giants indeed:
“Company seeks views on massive new solar farm plan”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c1l4mj8560yo
…East Park Solar would be built on the Bedfordshire-Cambridgeshire border, near St Neots, and span 776 hectares (1,918 acres), larger than 1,000 football pitches….
This is all becoming rather serious now, and desperately worrying.
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“Solar farms ‘vital’ for energy security – researcher”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5ywgjdg75jo
A leading climate change researcher has insisted solar farms are vital for the UK’s energy security.
Asher Minns, from the Tyndall Centre at the University of East Anglia in Norwich said: “We need to be producing our own electricity, not relying on overseas regimes.”
His comments came after concerns were raised by Norfolk County Council’s leader, who said she found a growing number of plans for solar farms “deeply disturbing”.
Conservative Kay Mason Billig said she was worried “valuable agricultural land” was being used for solar panels.
Mrs Billig told a council meeting that solar farms were “an eyesore in our beautiful countryside” and local authorities were not given the opportunity to reject them.
Solar farms greater than 50 megawatts (MW) in output are considered too significant to the UK’s energy needs to be decided by local councils.
The government has the final say on what are described as “nationally significant infrastructure projects”….
...Mr Minns said that with a growing population and the UK’s need to be less-reliant on foreign energy “we absolutely need to electrify everything”…..
Here he is:
https://tyndall.ac.uk/people/asher-minns/
…My expertise is as a professional science communicator who specialises in engaging audiences outside of academia with climate and environmental research. I am a founder of the science of climate change communication, which like all my work, is about applying academic evidence and theory to real-world practice. I have also been working with environmental artists for many years, here is a retrospective of some of that work Respond Climate Change….
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Expect more accidents on the A47, especially around Swaffham, as drivers are blinded by the glare of thousands of solar panels.
One thing which strikes me about this single ‘solar farm’ proposal is that it encompasses 5 widely separated regions, each containing a number of separate areas where solar panels will be installed. It seems to me that, in order to get around local planning rules, developers are submitting plans for lots of different ‘solar farms’, located roughly in the same area, and lumping them together as one project which, because of its combined output, is rated as ‘nationally significant infrastructure’.
https://uk.rwe.com/project-proposals/high-grove-solar-farm/
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“Call for protection from solar farms and pylons”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn03gr0071ro
The government is to be lobbied to make the Lincolnshire Fens the first area of the country to be protected from green energy schemes in order to produce food.
The region is currently the subject of several applications for solar farms plus an electricity substation and pylons.
On Wednesday, South Holland District Council voted unanimously to apply pressure to have the Fens’ “critical” food-producing role recognised and given designated protection, similar to areas of conservation.
A government spokesperson said solar power does not risk the UK’s food security.…
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But then there’s this…:
“Saga of ‘monstrous’ solar farm ends with approval”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c62d5nndedwo
A giant solar farm has been approved for a second time, bringing to an end a planning dispute lasting several years.
Lightsource bp’s plans were approved by Durham County Council in May, but reconsidered after it was claimed the output capacity of was incorrectly presented.
Approved again on Wednesday, the farm will now be built on 282 acres of land at Hett, near Spennymoor.
Some residents battled against the scheme, labelling it “monstrous”, criticising its environmental impact and claiming the area is “not sunny enough”….
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“Giant solar farm plans set for public hearing”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c1jd22jee7no
Plans to build a new solar farm are to be considered by the government Planning Inspectorate at a public hearing.
Developer RWE wants to build the Byers Gill Solar Farm on sites between Darlington and Stockton.
Residents argue it will devastate communities, dominate the landscape and diminish farmland….
...Bishopton resident Norman Mullaney said people fear becoming “prisoners” in the village if the solar farm is approved.
“There is a large amount of anxiety and anguish about the impact of the poorly-located solar farm,” he said.
“The size of the development is a major concern.”...
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“£39m solar farm switched on today – and it’s bigger than 90 football pitches”
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/39m-solar-farm-switched-today-040000763.html
A £39million solar farm just outside the market town of Richmond in North Yorkshire is switched on today and is set to power 20,000 UK homes.
The 55MW solar farm at Skeeby is the region’s largest so far and the UK’s fourth largest, consisting of more than 93,000 panels across around 166 acres, equivalent to 93 football pitches.
The deployment of two-sided modules dramatically enhances exposure to light.
Owned and developed by Atrato Onsite Energy, the solar farm is set to provide OVO customers with clean energy as part of the energy company’s commitment to be a zero carbon business by 2035. It will also cut 11,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually.
The announcement comes just months after the new Government set its ambitions to deliver a zero-carbon electricity system by 2030, which requires the UK’s solar power generation to triple…..
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I chanced across this post on WUWT about the coal/carbon/energy intensity of the manufacturing process for solar panels:
https://wattsupwiththat.com/2024/05/23/coals-importance-for-solar-panel-manufacturing/
This makes me wonder whether chinese-made solar panels might release more CO2 in their manufacture than they “save” when displacing modern, gas-fired generation in our market. Similarly, what does their EROEI look like? In both cases their low capacity factors in our northern climes must weaken the climate claims.
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“Largest solar farm in UK could be built in Norfolk”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c8rlp73x845o
...The decision over the future of the proposals will lie with Ed Miliband, Secretary of State for Energy and Net Zero, who has already declared his intention to push forward with onshore windfarms and solar farms across the country.
Previously, people have raised concerns about solar farms in the region, which include the loss of farmland, implications for food security, worries over the cost and efficiency of the schemes, and the impact on rural landscapes.
Kay Mason Billig, Conservative leader of Norfolk County Council, said the government was “riding roughshod” over local opinions and claimed the county was “under attack” from the solar industry….
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“Controversial solar farm plans submitted to government”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c748dvdrx94o
Plans to build one of Europe’s largest solar farms have been submitted to the government.
The proposed 1,000-hectare (2,471-acre) Botley West Solar Farm would cover sites near Botley, Kidlington and Woodstock in Oxfordshire.
Developer Photovolt Development Partners (PVDP) said it sent its proposals to the government’s Planning Inspectorate on Friday.
Campaigners told BBC Radio Oxford the development, which they label as “far too big”, would increase flood risk in the surrounding areas...
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“New solar farm inches closer to approval”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cg7gn1dvzr1o
A solar farm with the potential to produce 10 megawatts of power – enough to power 5,500 homes a year – could be built on farmland.
The intended land east of Battens Farm would cover two agricultural fields between Yatton Keynell and Allington, near Chippenham, Wiltshire.
A planning application has now been submitted to Wiltshire Council by developer Noventum Power, following a consultation….
In case you have any doubts regarding the wisdom of industrialising our countryside and taking farming land out of agricultural use, the BBC ends the report with three paragraphs under the heading “What is climate change?”. Shameful brainwashing by the BBC.
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“Farmers fear loss of land if solar farm approved”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c62lrxyz163o
Farmers have said a proposed solar farm in Cornwall would take away prime agricultural land, if approved.
Residents fear the 210-acre solar park, proposed for the Carland Cross area, would severely impact food production and local businesses.
There are also concerns the solar farm, which would have 125,000 solar panels, will exacerbate flooding in an area which is already hit by run-off from fields during heavy rain.
The company behind the plan said the solar farm would improve the countryside through buffers such as hedgerows.…
That they feel able to make such crass comments tells us everything we need to know – under this mad government they can think they can say and do whatever they want and get away with it. Sadly, they’re probably right.
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“Plans for 3,700 acres of solar panels on farmland”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cde7xy8wk6xo
People have been invited to have their say on plans to install 3,700 acres (1,500 hectares) of solar panels on farmland.
Kingsway Solar wants to install the panels on three parcels of land in south Cambridgeshire and build 14km (8.6 miles) of overhead power lines.…
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“Perthshire residents shocked by ‘intimidating’ door-to-door calls about controversial solar farm
Locals say residents are being pressured to withdraw objections to the Methven solar scheme”
https://www.thecourier.co.uk/fp/news/perth-kinross/5126210/methven-solar-farm-door-to-door-calls/
Perthshire residents have hit out at canvassers going door to door trying to enlist support for a controversial solar farm.
Locals have complained they are being pressured to withdraw objections to the Methven scheme.And Perth and Kinross Council has issued a statement distancing itself from the tactics.
The company behind the visits, Your Shout, says it is working on behalf of the developer NS Solar Kinnon Park Ltd...
…Critics have labelled the practice “intimidatory”.
Janice Hopwood is one almost 350 people who have objected to the application.
She says locals are questioning the point of the exercise at this stage in the planning process.
“It’s almost as if they’re saying ‘we know where you live’,” she said….
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“Fifth proposal for solar farm in county ‘worrying'”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx2y41dgg07o
Plans for a large solar farm – the fifth to be proposed in Norfolk in recent weeks – have been described as “deeply worrying” by the county council’s leader.
The project by Noventum Power could be built near Long Stratton, an area of the county that had already been eyed for the largest solar farm in the UK.
“I see this sudden gold rush to sign up acres of land as a precursor to the expected planning permission for the new pylons, it is a perverse and back-to-front policy,” said Kay Mason Billig, a Conservative....
...The biggest planned solar farm for the region – and the largest in the pipeline in the UK – is in Gissing, near Long Stratton, where 900 megawatts (MW) of power.
The LDRS has speculated that it could cover about 5,000 acres (2,023 hectares).
There are also proposals for East Pye, which would cover 2,700 acres (1,093 hectares). around several villages close to Long Stratton.
Two developments have been proposed further afield, at High Grove, a 4,000-acre (1,619 hectares) scheme near Dereham and Swaffham, and the Droves, spanning 2,800 acres (1,133 hectares) on an adjoining site.
Reacting to the latest scheme, Ms Mason Billig added: “There is no common sense being applied, no thought for the long-term repercussions, no thought for the impact this will have on local people, their wellbeing, the environmental damage, or their losses due to this blight.
“We should not be bounced into an unacceptable and unmitigable situation.
“It must be stopped.”
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One step the protestors against these huge solar projects could try would be to take some drone footage of the places affected and then photoshop in the huge areas of black panels. That would bring home the scale and impact of these schemes: swathes of agricultural land replaced by featureless, sterile industrial flatland.
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“Farmers claim eviction threat from solar farm”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cpqdr2yj4g8o
A number of tenant farmers in East Yorkshire say they could be facing eviction to make way for a large solar farm.
The BBC has been told that at least eight farms that lease land from The Dalton Estate, north of Beverley, had been notified of the proposals.
Farmers said the solar project could cover at least 4 sq miles (10.3 sq km) and would be a “bombshell” to families who had farmed in the area for generations.
The Dalton Estate confirmed it has been approached by a renewable energy company but an “exploration exercise is at a very early stage”.
One farmer, who did not wish to be identified, said the plans had caused anxiety and upset and could affect 16 farms, half of which are tenant businesses.
He said: “Aside from destroying everything farmers have worked for, the loss of livelihood, our children’s future etc, there will be a massive loss of biodiversity should this plan go ahead so that the Dalton Estate can make more money.”…
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“Storm Darragh leaves UK’s Biggest solar farm in pieces”
https://www.msn.com/en-ie/news/uknews/storm-darragh-leaves-uk-s-biggest-solar-farm-in-pieces/ar-AA1vyHBj
Owners of a solar farm torn to pieces were among those counting the cost of killer Storm Darragh – as recovery work was ongoing on Monday.
Hundreds of panels at the giant 190-acre Porth Wen solar farm in Anglesey, North Wales – only built two years ago – were blown off their mountings, some ripped to shreds.
The site at Llanbadrig, in the north of the island which is owned by French power firm EDF Energy and powers up to 9,500 households, now needs significant repairs.
Elsewhere on the island of Anglesey, blades were sheared off a wind turbine which then reportedly caught fire.…
So much for energy security!
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Regarding the resilience, or lack of it, of renewable infrastructure, some photos in today’s Mail. Apparently Emma Pinchbeck of the CCC was on the Kuenssberg show on Sunday, and according to Spiked, gave a warning that the likes of Storm Darragh would worsen in the absence of international action on climate change.
According to the Mail,
Contra Pinchbeck, I doubt that action to tackle climate change, whether international or parochial, will have any effect on the kind of storms we can expect to hit the UK. So maybe they should tighten the bolts a little more just to be on the safe side.
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Sorry Mark. Crossed in the post!
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I suspect there have been many more cases of damage to solar and wind projects but I doubt we will hear much about them…..
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Mad Ed is like: ‘Oh no, nasty weather wrecked our solar panels which we built on farmland to make weather nice again, so we’ll have to build even more!’
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“Residents to have their say on solar farm plans”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp83y4rn3dzo
People living close to a planned solar farm which would be bigger than any currently built have been invited to meetings with the developers.
The Tillbridge Solar project would cover around 3,000 acres (1,214 hectares), with councillors recently saying the size “beggars belief”.
The proposed site is close to the village of Glentworth, between Gainsborough and Caenby Corner in Lincolnshire.
Public meetings will be held in January to gather evidence from the community…..
Yes, they will gather evidence and hold public meetings, but will the wishes of the public be heeded or ignored? My money’s on the latter.
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“Huge solar farm approved despite objections”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0ewl9g055jo
Plans to build a huge solar farm which will contain more than 80,000 panels have been approved by West Lothian Council, despite objections from neighbours.
The farm will cover about 150 acres of open farmland near the rural village of Threemiletown and will be operational for 35 years.
Councillors in support of the plans said renewable energy was vital to help tackle the climate crisis. [sic]
However, neighbours and some councillors raised objections, saying it would negatively impact local homes and agriculture.…
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“Solar farms: What next for Norfolk?”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c98347eg4zno
At first I thought the BBC was attempting balance with regard to the debate. I appreciate that bias is in the eye of the beholder, but it doesn’t look terribly balanced to me:
Five major solar farms, including one that would be the largest in the UK, have been proposed for Norfolk. What are the arguments for and against the plans?
Before and since the General Election, the government has regularly said it wants the UK to be a “clean energy superpower”.
With less reliance on foreign-supplied gas and oil, the country would have improved energy security – and ministers have said that would bring electricity bills down as well.…
...Asher Minns, from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, said energy security was more important than food.
“The need for energy security by producing our own electricity, whether through wind or solar, is absolutely paramount,” he said.
“We absolutely need to do this. We needed to do this about 20 years ago.”…
I should have thought that both energy and food security are vital, it shouldn’t be a choice. There seems to be no recognition that renewables, being unreliable and intermittent and requiring back-up, are not what energy security looks like.
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And if we use a conventional power station rather than a solar farm then we will use up to 500 times LESS land for the same power output thereby leaving plenty of land for farming! But I have ignored the benefits of subsidy farming – oops! Regards, John C.
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Oh, I’m so tired of these factually challenged ideologically-driven morons squatting rent free at British Universities. Food security is energy security! Food is energy – for the human body – arguably even more essential than energy for human activity outside of the body. Decent food is the first line of defence against hyperthermia; decent heating is only the second line of defence. If we have to import more food energy because we are allegedly (but not actually) decreasing our reliance upon imports of fossil fuel energy, then that does not equate to an overall increase in energy security, even if you believe their fairy tales about the reliability and security of so called weather and seasonally-dependent renewables. No wonder Labour are keen to abolish private schools.
These retarded eco-spivs need to be called out on their nonsense – damned quick – or this country is going down.
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…Food security is energy security! Food is energy – for the human body – arguably even more essential than energy for human activity outside of the body. Decent food is the first line of defence against hyperthermia; decent heating is only the second line of defence. If we have to import more food energy because we are allegedly (but not actually) decreasing our reliance upon imports of fossil fuel energy, then that does not equate to an overall increase in energy security, even if you believe their fairy tales about the reliability and security of so called weather and seasonally-dependent renewables….
That’s a thumbs up from me, Jaime.
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I often wonder how MSM & BBC in particular get the quotes that reinforce the narrative they want to push.
From that BBC article we 2 quotes from “ordinary people” –
“Brian Ross, 74, from Long Stratton said a lot of people did not want solar farms because of “nimbyism”. “We’ve got to have alternative sources of power so we have to rely on these renewables. “If we do not have these solar farms, windfarms, how are we going to carry on with our electricity?”
“But Peter Robertson, 74, from Hempnall, said he was conflicted by the need for green energy and protecting the local landscape. “I’m in favour of renewable energy and I know that’s the way it ought to go,” he said. “But that plan is so big. “The way farming is, I suspect farmers will be quite grateful to get some money for their land which is not really a good thing for any of us.”
Nice quotes BBC, wonder how many quotes/comments were discarded?
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PS – Alan has been AWOL lately, anybody know if he’s OK?
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“Solar farms v people power: the locals fighting for their county”
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/dec/29/solar-farms-v-people-power-the-locals-fighting-for-their-county
Worth a read. The Observer/Guardian actually sympathising with solar farm objectors, and questioning the narrative. That may be schizophrenic, but it’s encouraging. Who knows, maybe one day they will even apologise for their relentless campaigning in favour of this sort of thing?
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“‘Applause’ as green belt solar farm refused”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3weg0qzq4zo
Plans for a temporary solar farm on green belt land have been refused.
The proposals, for Usworth House Farm near Springwell village, on the outskirts of Sunderland and the urban edge of Gateshead, had drawn more than 400 objections.
Concerns raised at a planning meeting included noise and impacts on heritage and agricultural land.
Sunderland City Council planners had recommended the plans for approval, but councillors voted unanimously to reject the solar farm.
The decision was met with applause from campaigners at the meeting, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.
Applicant Boom Power Ltd wanted to build 59,319 solar PV panels, estimated to generate renewable energy for more than 11,000 homes a year.
The proposed lifespan for the farm was 40 years, after which it would have been decommissioned and brought back to its original state.
But during a council planning meeting, objectors raised concerns including “intolerable noise” from the “industrial scale” development, long-term impacts on agricultural land and food production, as well as heritage impacts on Scheduled Ancient Monument the Bowes Railway.…
A great result from my old home turf.
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Solar at the latitude of Sunderland? I suggest the developers should consult the map of solar potential at the top of this post.
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They are keen to cover Scotland in them too! There’s very little sense in any of this.
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Mark – can I rephrase that – “There’s lots of money to be made, never mind if it makes very little sense”.
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“Questions asked over scale of rural solar farm”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cqld5y7yqw4o
The developer behind a 1,000-hectare (2,471-acre) solar farm has been advised to justify the project’s scale by a government agency.
Photovolt Development Partners (PVDP) submitted plans in November for the Botley West Solar Farm which would cover an area of countryside near Botley, Kidlington and Woodstock.
The Planning Inspectorate has now asked for “additional detail” on the reasons for the scale of the solar farm, which has been criticised by campaigners.
PVDP has said, if approved, the facility would generate 840 MW of renewable energy to the National Grid, enough to power the equivalent of 330,000 homes.
The proposed solar farm is considered a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) meaning the application must be considered by the government, rather than local councils.
The developer’s application for the solar farm has been accepted for examination by the Planning Inspectorate….
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“Why is the Botley West solar farm so controversial?”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clyn4v03642o
A plan to create one of the UK’s largest solar farms and cover more than 2,000 acres of Oxfordshire countryside with glass panels has split opinion in the county.
The developer behind it says large-scale solar energy is crucial to meet the UK’s climate targets, but campaigners argue the scale of the project is “entirely inappropriate” for the rural location.…
……Botley West is a proposed £800m solar farm, covering about 1,000 hectares (2,471 acres) across three areas – north of Woodstock, west of Kidlington and west of Botley.…
…It would be among the biggest solar farms in the UK. The current largest is the 250-acre Shotwick Solar Park in Flintshire, Wales, which can produce 72.2 megawatts.…
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“Plans for solar farm near Beverley revealed”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cm23xrn817ro
Plans have been revealed for a solar farm in East Yorkshire that could generate green power for 100,000 homes.
Renewable energy firm Orsted said Kingfisher Solar Farm, on land three miles (5km) north of Beverley, would have a capacity of 320 megawatts and would provide clean energy for up to 60 years.
If granted consent, the project, east of the A164, is anticipated to be generating electricity by the end of 2030....
...Tenant farmers previously told BBC Look North they could be facing eviction to make way for the large solar farm.
At least eight farms that lease land from The Dalton Estate, north of Beverley, had been notified of the proposals, with the estate confirming it had been approached by a renewable energy company.
George McManus is from the Fields of Glass campaign group which is opposing plans for Peartree Hill solar farm, a separate project in East Yorkshire.
He said: “These are massive swathes of land that are going to be taken over for solar farms.
“It’s going to have a massive impact on the character of East Riding right across the county.”…
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“Plans for new solar farm by River Hull”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cjr8n54vz1qo
Plans have been unveiled for a solar farm near Beverley that could power up to 15,000 homes...
Please, BBC, stop parroting the developers’ PR. “Could” and “up to”, especially without saying for how long, are utterly meaningless words in this context.
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“Why more mega solar farms are coming to the countryside”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c626w5kq9kqo
The energy industry expects more plans to emerge to convert countryside into solar farms after the government pledged to treble the UK’s capacity to generate solar power over the next five years.
Critics say they will harm rural settings, but others say they are a necessary part of battling human-driven climate change.
According to the Planning Inspectorate, there are developed plans for 10 large solar farms across the East of England and Northamptonshire.
Chris Hewett, the chief executive of Solar Energy UK, said he expected the area to see more proposals over the next decade, after which development would “plateau”….
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“Solar farms are ‘slap in the face’ – councillor”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy8xkppzrxjo
A senior Lincolnshire councillor has described a decision to give the go-ahead to two large solar farms as a “slap in the face” for the county.
Colin Davie made the comments following the announcement that applications for both the Heckington Fen Solar Park and the West Burton Solar Project have been granted development consent by the government.
Heckington Fen, to the south of the county, which is being developed by Ecotricity, will generate enough power for more than 100,000 homes, according to developers.
The West Burton project, which will straddle the Lincolnshire Nottinghamshire border, is approximately the same size and will use 788 hectares of land across three sites….
…Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, who has the final say on such proposals, launched a ‘solar task force’, external last autumn in order to accelerate solar farm applications.…
...There are at least seven other large NSIPS in the planning pipeline for Lincolnshire.
If they are all approved they will cover more than 30,000 acres of land, according to developers’ planning documents.
The government believes that solar energy offers a significant contribution way of “decarbonising the grid” and reducing the UK’s reliance on fossil fuels.
But in several rural communities the opposition to the solar industry looks likely to escalate.
In a statement, Dale Vince OBE, founder of Ecotricity, said: “We’re delighted that Ecotricity has been granted permission for this major green energy project that will help the country reach its net zero target and create hundreds of jobs.
“There will also be a significant biodiversity boost across the site.”…
So, the owner of the recently-approved site is Dale Vince, major Labour Party donor. Whilst no laws have been broken here, there is an appalling whiff of at least a potential conflict of interest if Ed Miliband is the person who made the decision to approve the application in the face of strong local opposition. Is this Labour government really any different from the last Tory one? It certainly doesn’t seem to me to be any better or to have higher standards.
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“Council leader hits back in solar farm land debate”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c203vd9zyldo
The leader of Lincolnshire County Council has hit back at claims only low-grade farmland will be used for solar farms.
The founder of renewable energy company Ecotricity Dale Vince said “there really isn’t a clash with food production” and “the land that we build solar on is good for grazing but that’s about it”.
However, council leader Martin Hill said developers were “queuing up to have more solar farms” and several applications were for “good quality land”….
...Five large solar farms have already been approved for Lincolnshire with nine more awaiting a decision.
Last week the government approved one at Heckington Fen, which is being developed by Ecotricity.
The council’s executive member for environment, economy and planning, Colin Davie, said “trashing the countryside” by putting “ginormous industrial developments” on agricultural land had “caused much local outrage”.
The 7000 Acres campaign group said it was “fighting to protect the countryside from mass industrialisation”.
However, Mr Vince dismissed the criticisms as “a lot of fuss”.…
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The backlash continues. I still hope that this will be the thing (well, that and blackouts and ever-rising energy bills, contrary to what we were promised) that brings net zero down:
“Solar park will ‘completely swamp’ nine villages”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c04nq66nw17o
People living in some of Britain’s most picturesque villages have been divided by plans for a one of the biggest solar parks in the country.
Developers want to build solar panels on 2,000 acres of farmland near Malmesbury in the Cotswolds, producing enough energy for 115,000 homes.
Rosie Clark is one of hundreds of local campaigners who believes it will “decimate the local area”.
But supporters of the scheme, including the former mayor of Malmesbury Lesley Bennett, accused opponents of being “well-connected people” whose leaflets are “full of mistakes”.
The government wants to quadruple the amount of solar power generated in the UK. But wherever developers propose new solar farms, opposition springs up.
Rosie Clark lives in a stone cottage surrounded by Cotswold fields and hedgerows in Wiltshire.
She is worried there could be more than “a million panels which will be as high as a double-decker bus”.
The developers have not confirmed exact numbers, but have said it would be ‘at least around 700,000 panels’.
“It will completely swamp nine local villages,” Ms Clark said.
“We are in an area of outstanding national beauty. It will decimate the local area, which relies a lot on tourism.”..
As for the snide comment about “well-connected people” who oppose wind farms – it would be difficult to be more well-connected than solar farm developer, Dale Vince.
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“Miliband ‘took no part’ in solar farm approval”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cwywxy4k38jo
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband played no part in giving the green light to a solar farm in Lincolnshire linked to Labour Party donor Dale Vince, he has told MPs.
In January, the government approved a solar farm at Heckington Fen, on farmland between Sleaford and Boston.
Miliband said he stepped back from from making a decision on the 500MW project, which is being developed by Mr Vince’s Ecotricity….
...Miliband was questioned in the House of Commons by shadow frontbencher Joy Morrissey about the project.
Morrissey said: “The secretary of state recently approved a 524-hectare solar farm in Lincolnshire – a farm linked to Dale Vince, a £5.4 million donor to the Labour Party.
“The public have a right to be certain that this decision was carried out properly.”
Miliband responded: “I took no part in this decision and recused myself from it.”…
There are many things about Mr Miliband which I doubt (such as his grip on the DESNZ brief), but I don’t doubt his honesty with regard to the decision. To be blunt, he would have to be unutterably stupid to have made that decision himself. But it doesn’t really matter, does it? If it was delegated to a junior Labour Minister, then the taint of Dale Vince’s massive donation to the Labour Party doesn’t go away. If it was delegated to a civil servant, they would surely know what decision their lord and master expected, so that doesn’t really solve the problem either. I’m sure that no rules or laws have been broken, but as with the freebies scandal last summer, it isn’t a good look. Starmer seems to think that anything is OK so long as it’s within the rules, however inappropriate the behaviour may be.
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Mark – partial quote from your 29 Jan link –
“Meanwhile, Lesley Bennett (former mayor of Malmesbury from the article) is one of a few people who will speak up for the solar scheme.
“It’s nimbyism, it’s perfect nimbyism,” she said. “We need clean energy. We need to be energy independent.”
The campaign to Stop Lime Down is well organised. Hundreds of people have been signed up, leaflets printed, there are signs everywhere in these north Wiltshire villages. But Mrs Bennett thinks there are many silent solar supporters, who dare not speak up. “It’s a few well-connected rich people who’ve created a brilliant campaign,” she says.
“But it’s an illusion. This leaflet is full of mistakes.”
Wonder why she thinks many silent solar supporters, will not dare not speak up?
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Very interesting that she thinks it’s only well-connected rich people who want to stop the solar panels. Here in west Cumbria it was well-connected wll-to-do people from the other side of the county (Tim Farron’s constituency) who campaigned (ultimately successfully) to stop the coal mine from going ahead. There’s one key difference. The coal mine would have created a lot of well-paid long-term jobs in an area of high unemployment – solar farms won’t do that.
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They won’t take no for an answer, because they know that Miliband will say yes:
“Appeal over rejected solar farm plan”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5ydlgzqx3lo
Rejected plans for a large solar farm in Staffordshire which could generate enough electricity to power 11,500 homes a year have been sent to appeal.
The scheme, on a site near Cheadle, was blocked by East Staffordshire Borough and Staffordshire Moorlands District councils. The appeal is set to be heard by a planning inspector in April.
The site spans 93 hectares, equivalent to about 130 football pitches, across 20 fields….
...During the application process, three letters of support were received and 208 objections were submitted to the two councils.
Leigh Parish Council and Checkley Parish Council also raised concerns.…
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“Fears ancient ruin will become ‘industrial park'”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gzvxnpvdyo
Plans for a solar farm near ancient ruins in Kent have been unveiled, prompting some to worry the area will be turned into a “large industrial park”.
RBL Solar is set to apply to build a 40MW solar farm close to a Roman site at Richborough near Sandwich.…
…An environmental impact assessment report submitted by RBL Solar to Dover District Council details the Roman ruins are about 75m (82 yards) from the proposed solar farm.
The local authority is yet to decide whether the 87-football-pitch-sized site on a former landfill will go ahead….
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“Plans for solar farm the size of 850 football pitches”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c70kd4zz295o
A new solar farm the size of 850 football pitches could “land in Suffolk” within the next five years after developers unveiled plans.
EcoPower Suffolk wants to build a new energy farm and battery storage facility on 1,500 acres (607 hectares) of land near Eye and an existing substation north of Yaxley.
The project aims to deliver around 250 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy and those behind it hoped to be able to connect it to the grid by 2030.
Due to the plant’s size, it will be classed as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP), meaning it will need to acquire planning approval from the Secretary of State…..
So that’s nailed on then.
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“Due to the plant’s size, it will be classed as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP), meaning it won’t need to acquire local planning approval.”
Thus it is that the Nimbys standing in the way of the Unstoppable Clean Energy Transition will be swept aside and the great British countryside industrialised in order to single-handedly save the planet as deemed necessary by the overwhelming consensus of scientists.
Ed (when he’s not strumming his banjo, tunelessly enunciating Dylan):
I will not cease from [absolutely] Mental Fight,
Nor shall my Pen sleep in my hand:
Till we have approved and built Clean Energy,
O’er Englands green & pleasant Land.
A future Wordsworth:
I wandered, lonely as a cloud, among the dark satanic windmills
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of glaring-bright panels;
Beside the lake, beyond the trees,
Motionless in the breeze [unlike the giant windmills].
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line.
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“Solar farm to power 10,500 homes gets go-ahead”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c1wex4xdl0no
A solar farm plan which attracted strong local opposition has been approved following a three-hour discussion between councillors, campaigners and a landowner.
The facility earmarked for agricultural land north of Gray’s Lane in Wissett, near Halesworth, received 238 negative responses from the public and formal objections from nearby parish councils.
On Tuesday, the application by Pathfinder Clean Energy (PACE) ULDev Limited – which had been recommended by planning officers – was approved by East Suffolk Council.
The solar farm will cover 41.7 hectares (103 acres) and have the capacity for 27 megawatts, producing enough energy to power 10,518 homes in East Suffolk.
Concerns raised during the planning process included food security, location, landscape and visual harm, heritage impacts and a lack of water supply….
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I don’t know why the BBC didn’t supply a link to the study, unless they don’t want us being able to verify for ourselves what it said and checking to see if any of its findings were qualified:
“Well-managed solar farms can boost wildlife – study”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c2l049zkvezo
Needless to say, I’m sceptical, though I’m not completely dismissive of it. The problem is, insofar as it’s possible to interpret this without sight of the original article, it seems to me that many of the mega-farms being given the nod in a rather cavalier way under the current government possibly aren’t “well-managed” solar arrays of the type envisaged by the study. For instance, the study apparently says:
“…if you manage solar energy production in a certain way, not only are you providing clean energy but benefiting biodiversity.”
The findings showed well-managed solar farms in arable-dominated areas could provide biodiversity benefits as part of mixed-use landscapes.
The study also found new solar farms should not be located in areas of ecological risk, nature-protected sites and other sites that are important for rare or declining species.
….when built on low or moderate grade agricultural land.
The RSPB called for a “strategic and spatial approach to planning for renewable energy” to ensure solar farms were built in low areas of risk for nature…”.
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The internet is a wonderful thing at times. Here’s the study:
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00063657.2025.2450392#d1e423
It’s probably fair to say that it isn’t as positive as the spin put on it by the BBC and the RSPB. The thrust of its findings is that previous studies compared bird (and bat) numbers in solar farm areas and made unfavourable findings compared to grassland, but the findings improve is the comparator is intensively farmed agricultural land. There are positives in the report, but as I suspected, there are also caveats:
…The addition of new grassland habitat in the form of mixed habitat solar, as well as the structural complexity provided by the panels, is likely to be more beneficial in an arable-dominated context than if sites were located in an already grassland-dominated landscape…
…Our results do not reduce the need to ensure that solar farms are developed away from nature-sensitive areas that are locally, nationally, or internationally important for wildlife. Solar farm proposals should be informed by national and local policy documents, such as local nature recovery strategies in England, the Nature Recovery Plan in Wales and Scotland’s forthcoming Biodiversity Strategy to 2045. Whilst field-scale solar is generally incompatible with continued crop production (though see agrivoltaics: Dinesh & Pearce Citation2016), and care should be taken when siting solar farms on high grade farmland, given potential leakage effects (Don et al. Citation2024), modelling at the national scale suggests that the total land-take of solar farms under future climate mitigation scenarios is likely to be small (Copping et al. Citation2024).
Considering biodiversity needs in solar farm planning would also help address public concerns; Roddis et al. (Citation2020) found that the most common concern raised by the public regarding solar farms was the impact on wildlife and habitats. Our findings show that in nature depleted landscapes, like arable farmland, solar farms managed for mixed habitat can increase bird abundance and diversity; this effect has also been observed with other taxa (Blaydes et al. Citation2021, Walston et al. Citation2023). Whilst careful planning is needed to ensure solar farms are sited in suitable areas, if managed with biodiversity in mind then their impact can be beneficial and could provide relief from the effects of agricultural intensification on biodiversity in the surrounding landscape.
Quite a few “ifs” and “coulds” in there.
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Thank you Mark. Some weekend reading for me.
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This is not a serious scientific study. A serious scientific study would not use unscientific activist terminology. I stopped reading as soon as I got to this:
Utter nonsense written by personnel from the Centre for Landscape Regeneration, Cambridge University, which apparently has close links with the RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy. A circle jerk Green blob academy of policy wonks and mediocre academics if ever there was one, in search of a means to justify its own existence. It’s another brain (dead) child of the infamous Emily Shuckburgh by the looks of it:
Independent research it is not. CLR is more biased than the BBC itself.
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I’m not sure if there is a difference between Agriculture Policy in Scotland and England regarding Set Aside where farmers are or were payed a subsidy to not cultivate a percentage acreage. Travelling around Scotland (not the highlands or west coast) there are still large areas with nothing going on, there are a few fields now put over to wild flowers and steeper hillsides planted with deciduous trees probably based on best subsidy on the idea of attracting more bees and small birds. Going by the worst place for solar in the world how can we ever convert productive arable land to becoming a solar farm ? How long after construction does the site become ‘naturalized’ enough to encourage wildlife to return ? Is it worms and beetles ?
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“Council approves plans for 5,000 panel solar farm”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c983z6404z1o
A plan to build a 5,000-panel solar farm near Hayle has been approved, despite concerns about flooding.
A Cornwall Council planning committee agreed to allow the facility, on 3.75 acres (1.5 hectares) of land next to the A30 off Loggans Road, at the entrance to the town.
The application was approved with six in favour, four against and no abstentions.
It comes after the council had refused a much larger solar farm application 3 miles (4.8km) away in Gwinear.…
...As well as objections from Hayle Town Council, neighbouring St Erth Parish Council was also against the proposal.
It stated: “Whilst the parish council supports the use of solar power it does so through the use of roofs, particularly in industrial locations, or alternative brownfield land locations.
“This site is located next to a site of special scientific interest (SSSI), is on a floodplain, is rich in biodiversity and will have a negative impact on wildlife in the area.“
A number of residents also raised concerns about flooding and the loss of land abundant with wildlife....
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It’s relentless, but then, why not? The subsidies are generous:
“Solar farm plans for fields by A1(M) submitted”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cwye9vxrze0o
Plans have been submitted for a large solar farm on fields by the A1(M) in North Yorkshire.
Brompton Solar Ltd has applied for permission to site solar panels on aluminium frames on land either side of the motorway north of Brompton-on-Swale.
The 80-hectare farm would be capable of producing up to 39.3MW of energy, agents for the applicants said.
The developers said the site would operate as a solar farm for 40 years before it reverted to farmland....
…Documents submitted with plans stated the panels would have “an anti-glare coating to minimise glint and glare” and the site would have “appropriate set-back distances to the closest residential properties.”…
I should think it would need very effective anti-glare coating if it’s not to cause problems for motorists on the main trunk road up the east side England.
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“Residents fear being ‘imprisoned’ by solar farms”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3w8vyngv4do
Residents fighting the construction of large-scale solar farms say they are fearful their homes will be surrounded by industrial equipment.
Mark Peel, who farms near Beverley in East Yorkshire, said he and his family could end up feeling “imprisoned” by the proposed Peartree Hill development on nearby farmland.
“The countryside around here will be gone. It will be like an industrial estate,” he said…
…The planning inspectorate said it expects the application to be submitted this month. The final decision will be made by the energy secretary.…
I think we can guess the outcome already.
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“Huge solar farm plan ‘positive and negative'”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clyj42pd15go
A council’s views on plans to build one of Europe’s largest solar farms have been drafted ahead of being submitted to the government’s Planning Inspectorate.
West Oxfordshire District Council’s submission regarding the Botley West Solar Farm proposal was discussed by the authority’s Development Control Committee at a meeting on Monday.
The document sites the scale of the project as creating a “potential for significant and widespread positive and negative impacts”.
Botley West is a proposed £800m solar farm, covering about 1,000 hectares (2,471 acres) of Oxfordshire countryside.
The project is considered a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project, meaning the application must be considered by the government, not local councils.….
I think therefore, we can assume that permission will be granted, despite this:
…The authority’s drafted submission predominantly discusses the environmental impact of the proposed solar farm.
It questions the use of greenbelt land around Oxford, adding the development would “result in a fundamental change to the landscape character” in an area that is currently “attractive rural countryside”….
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“Solar farm on green belt land set for approval”
Of course it is!
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0jgdy03v94o
Plans for a solar farm in North Yorkshire which would be the size of at least 80 football pitches are expected to be approved despite concerns it would be built on protected green belt land.
Councillors at North Yorkshire Council are due to vote on the scheme, based at Hillam, near Selby, at a meeting on Tuesday after planning officers recommended it was given the go-ahead.
The 156 acre (63 hectare) site would provide enough energy to supply 17,000 homes and displace 107,500 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year, the proposals stated.
However, critics said the planned solar farm would cause “significant harm” to the green belt.…
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“Solar farm proposal for green belt land rejected”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cwyg80dyy7yo
Plans to erect a solar farm which would have covered an area equivalent to 80 football pitches on green belt land have been rejected by local councillors.
The 49.95MW scheme, proposed for an 156-acre (63-hectare) site at Hillam, near Selby, was recommended for approval by planning officers at North Yorkshire Council....
...councillors voted to reject the plans due to the loss of “good quality” arable land and the fact the scheme fell within green belt….
But guess what?
...The meeting heard an application for a solar farm near Malton had recently been given the go-ahead by the secretary of state, after initially being refused by the council, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
Councillors were warned that while the council would stand by the decision to refuse the application, the decision could still be overturned on appeal….
And it almost certainly will be.
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https://cloudwisdom.substack.com/p/a-solar-feeding-frenzy
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“Proposal for large solar farm near Lostwithiel”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c86pdgnw773o
A large solar farm covering more than 100 acres (42.6 hectares) has been proposed in Cornwall...
…The company said it intended to seek planning permission on a temporary basis for the project’s lifetime, which would be up to 50 years.
It said the site would be returned to full agricultural use at the end of the solar farm’s operational life.
I will concede that half a century isn’t permanent, and can therefore be described as temporary, but it’s stretching language a bit, and the claim that the land will be returned to “full agricultural use” some time approaching 2080 isn’t much consolation in terms of the nation’s immediate needs for food security in an increasingly uncertain and dangerous world.
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“Ed Miliband accused of targeting farmland to build solar panels”
Of course as Clisceppers know, there is a direct conflict between the need to grow crops on the sunniest land, and to harvest sunbeams on the same land. The damage is concentrated, by the natural way of political leanings, on Tory constituencies. The usual quoted figure of 0.1% of the land covered by solar farms makes the most of the fact that large parts of the UK are not prime growing areas. It means that prime areas are being trashed. Newark is top of the pops:
Telegraph link.
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“Solar ‘part of food security solution’ – developer”
This is actually quite humorous. Locals are opposing a solar installation because it’s in their back yard. But it’s also a food security issue because it’s on prime farming land.
Strangely the best farmland is in the sunniest places, so I’m afraid there is an inevitable conflict there. What does the developer say?
It’s quite obvious that there is a trade off here. Neither side seem aware of it.
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“Huge solar farm will cause major harm, says council”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvg7krld3jvo
A large-scale solar farm would cause “major harm lasting generations” and should be “dramatically reduced” in size, a council has said.
Botley West Solar Farm would cover about 1,000 hectares (2,471 acres) of countryside at three sites in west Oxfordshire.
In its final written representation to the government, the district council will say the proposals are “detrimental” to the area….
That’s around 1,544 football pitches (operating on the assumption that a football pitch = 1.6 acres). If it goes ahead (which I assume it will since Miliband gets to make the decision) it will constitute a massive assault on the environment. And yet we get this:
However, Witney resident Jonathan Ford urged the council to reverse the verdict of their report.
“What is the issue of our time if not climate change… [the council should] acknowledge the clear truth, that Botley West will aid climate change mitigation.”
No it won’t, not in any meaningful sense at all. But it will cause a lot of environmental harm, in a very meaningful sense.
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Mark, You have commented before on how these huge areas are surrounded by stock-proof fencing which disrupts the domain of anything bigger than a rabbit. At first I thought that this could have advantages for smaller mammals – and especially ground-nesting birds – by excluding predators.
Then I started to wonder what these areas are like once built. It seems highly likely that undergrowth is controlled and, I suspect, that it is done by spraying herbicides. Any other method – mowing, herds of goats, whatever – would be costly and/or hard to use around and underneath the panels.
If they do use spraying then these huge areas will become complete wildlife deserts. No plants means no food, no cover, no flowers for insects and so on.
I will try to do some digging to see if any studies have been done. Any findings seem bound to form a strong argument against these huge projects.
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There is a video on YouTube with Martin Clunes doing the presenting, it does show some sheep moving about and the farmer saying they do graze sheep in the solar area. Other videos show a pretty barren area, but not all farmers have livestock of any type. Livestock have a habit of scratching and rubbing on anything in reach, even sheep can eventually break up a fence , so a nice corner of a panel to scratch my butt , oh it’s broken !
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“Campaigners join national walk against solar farms”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c1ld1p60ejeo
Campaigners against plans to build one of Europe’s largest solar farms have joined a nationwide community walk to protest against the potential impact of the proposals.
Botley West Solar Farm could cover about 1,000 hectares (2,471 acres) of countryside at three sites in west Oxfordshire if approved….
I loved this cheeky quote:
…Rosemary Lewis, who is part of the Stop Botley West campaign, told the BBC during the walk that solar energy “isn’t the best solution for this country”.
“It [the proposal] makes me feel very sad – not just for our generation, but for future generations because solar [power] has almost begun to have its day,” she said.
She added that the proposal had “not really been thought out carefully enough” by PVDP, as within the next 40 years solar power would be “obsolete technology”….
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“UK’s biggest solar farm ‘will ruin views of Malvern Hills’
Proposed development could pose fire risks and cause traffic disruptions for seven months, campaign leader warns”
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/06/08/uk-biggest-solar-farm-ruin-views-malvern-hills/
Britain’s biggest solar farm will ruin the views of the Malvern Hills if it gets planning permission, residents have warned.
Opponents of plans for a 271-acre solar farm near Powick, Worcestershire, have said it will destroy the natural landscape and pose a fire risk to people living nearby.
Preserve Powick Landscape and Nature (PPLAN), who have already erected signs around the area, marched from Hospital Lane in Powick through parts of the proposed site on Sunday.
They are worried the solar farm will disrupt views of the Malvern Hills, cause harm to local wildlife, and pose fire risks from batteries used to store energy.
Peter Loader, the leader of PPLAN who lives adjacent to the site, has described his concerns over the proposed development, including fire risks and traffic disruptions expected to last at least seven months.
He said the reason he had been co-ordinating the events in opposition to the solar farm “is primarily the impact on the landscape”….
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With all of these protests against solar schemes I have yet to see any projected images, using Photoshop or similar to show the disfigurement of the landscape. It may well be that I have missed them as I don’t read the main papers, etc.
It must surely be quite easy for someone who is a bit tech-savvy (unlike me!) to get hold of satellite views, photos from aircraft or drones, images of local views, etc. Areas could then be blacked in to show the scale and impact of the development.
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“Plans for solar farm on 108 acres of land”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cj427d4d92do
Plans for a new solar farm on 108 acres (44 hectares) of land is being proposed in Devon.
Exagen Development, which builds and operates renewable energy projects, is applying for planning permission from North Devon Council for farmland south of Buttercombe Lane, Braunton, after holding two public consultation events last year.
The farm is being proposed together with a sub-station, cabling, CCTV and fencing.…
...A recent survey has revealed 40% of respondents opposed the development, with 13% in support and 47% undecided.
Concerns were raised around the scale of the project, visual impact, ecology and biodiversity impacts….
These developments are unpopular (whatever the climate cultists tell us), but their unpopularity is an irrelevance to those in charge. I think forcing these developments on unwilling communities will produce a major backlash at the next general election, but an awful lot of environmental damage will have been done by then.
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It’s personal now:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/2067731/uk-seaside-town-Maryport-solar-farm
‘Boast’. It will be a bloody eyesore, a useless bloody eyesore, clearly visible on the hills above the town.
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“County a solar farm dumping ground, says councillor”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cr5vry8d93do
A councillor said a rural county had become “a dumping ground for solar farms” as a 218-acre plan was discussed.
Reform UK councillor Chris Brautigam also told Wiltshire Council’s strategic planning committee “we’ve already done our bit” on meeting solar targets.
He spoke as the authority turned down the Potterne Park Farm proposal, between the villages of Potterne, Urchfont, and Easterton. But council officers said the applicant can reapply after providing more information on the impact on archaeological assets.
Peter Grubb, from the Potterne Solar Farm Project, said climate change meant the proposal “qualifies as a critical national priority”.
Referring to the council exceeding by 39% its 2030 solar target, Brautigam told the committee “Wiltshire is a dumping ground for solar farms. We’ve already done our bit.”….
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“Solar farm plan refused over ‘landscape’ concerns”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c39zrxrwr81o
Plans for a large-scale solar farm in the countryside have been refused over concerns about noise and the impact on the landscape.
Hare Hill Solar’s proposal for the site in Haswell Plough was voted down by Durham County Council’s planning committee after a debate.
The developer hoped to operate the 154-acre (62.7 hectare) site at Harehill Farm alongside a battery storage system, but faced opposition from residents.
Durham County Council’s planning department had originally backed the development to provide clean energy to 17,600 homes, but the committee voted to knock back the plans.
Resident Janice Ferguson said her family would become “prisoners in our own home” if the solar farm went ahead.
“In every direction we will be surrounded by wire fencing, security lighting and CCTV cameras,” she told the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
“We will have to endure at least a year of dust and drilling while 90,000 panels are piledriven into the ground all around us.”…
Interestingly, the local Labour MP joined the protestors. Durham Council is now run by Reform. Does that explain both the planning decision and the local MP’s behaviour?
...Councillor Alan Bell said: “It’s immense, it’s enormous.
“The landscape harm is not going to be overcome.”...
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“Green light given to £200m solar farm”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvg8g4n1l98o
A £200m solar farm has been approved by the government.
Byers Gill Solar Farm, which is planned for several sites between Darlington and Stockton, has been granted a development consent order, which is required for nationally significant infrastructure projects.
Some residents had previously argued the development would devastate communities, dominate the landscape and diminish farmland….
..….The 180MW farm, which would be made up of several blocks of development, would be located in Brafferton, Hauxley Farm, Byers Gill Wood, Great Stainton, and two near Bishopton.
RWE has said the development, which will cover about 490 hectares (1,211 acres) of land in total, will have a lifespan of 40 years after which it will be removed…..
Yes, you read that correctly. 490 hectares (1,211 acres). That’s perhaps the equivalent of 650 football pitches.
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Interesting to make a comparison – Project Fortress in the head post at 360 ha / 350 MW, and the present example at 490 ha / 180 MW.
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“Families Face Losing Their Land in Solar Power Push”
https://dailysceptic.org/2025/08/01/families-face-losing-their-land-in-solar-power-push/
...What is now happening is that, whenever a solar company seeks a development consent order, it almost always asks for those [compulsory purchase] powers as part of the deal.
“This has set the stage for the most significant land transfers to private companies for more than a century,” says David Rogers, Professor of Ecology at Oxford University and founder of SolarQ, which monitors the expansion of solar farms.
“Solar and other renewable developers have been given outrageous powers by Miliband and they can use these powers to force people to give up their land, often top-quality farmland, to industrialise it with solar panels.
“So far, about 2,000sq km of English farmland are set to be covered in solar panels and many hundreds, possibly thousands, of people are facing legal threats of losing their lands and livelihoods.
“Most solar development companies are foreign-owned, so we risk seeing British people thrown off their land by foreign speculators all in the name of Net Zero.”…
Hmm. Where else have I heard about the potential abuse of CPO powers?
https://cliscep.com/2025/06/18/screwing-the-tern/
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“Hundreds object to solar farm plans”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c1kzedx187xo
Hundreds of people have objected to plans for a solar farm next to a canal.
Formal plans have been submitted to Stroud District Council to install photovoltaic panels on more than 117 acres of farmland next to the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal, just south of the village of Epney.
If approved, PACE Tribute Energy Limited said the panels would power around 11,000 homes….
That’s more than an acre of land being blanketed in solar panels for every 100 homes they claim will be powered by the solar panels. But of course the claim is false. They’ll power next to nothing in winter when the need for power is greatest.
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“Plans for large solar farm in village submitted”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c2enwvy8mx1o
Plans to create a large solar farm on 90 hectares of land in Solihull have been submitted to planners.
Applicant Total Energies wants to construct the solar farm and battery storage units on land at Woodhouse Farm in the village of Catherine De Barnes.
The land off Catherine De Barnes Lane sits south of Birmingham Airport and northeast of Solihull town centre.
The plan would see the development split into three sections, with solar panels in each and the storage units in the final third. A consultation is now underway with a closing date for submissions is 26 August.
The applicant proposes the farm and battery storage units would be in operation for a period of 40 years.…
and
“Solar plan would ‘wreck’ Vicar of Dibley view”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c8jpek4k4jdo
Plans to build a solar farm on countryside featured in the opening credits of BBC sitcom The Vicar of Dibley would “wreck” the view, opponents have said.
Developer Solar2 wants to build an 80 hectare (200 acre) solar farm on land near the Stokenchurch Gap – where the M40 scythes through the Chilterns.
The company said the 0.3 sq mile (0.8 sq km) development – near the Oxfordshire villages of Lewknor and Postcombe – would generate enough energy to power 16,500 homes.
But those opposed to the proposals have said the panels would be an “interruption to the landscape”.
Robert Massie, from Postcombe, said: “It was chosen by Richard Curtis, who wrote the vicar of Dibley, specifically as the opening titles for the Vicar of Dibley because it was a quintessentially English view.”
He continued: “If you’re going to chose a place to plonk a massive industrial solar farm, for goodness sake, why put it there?”…
By the way, that’s an acre of land per 80+ homes – and it won’t “power” those homes reliably and consistently either.
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In a similar vein to his letter to wind farm developers, Richard Tice has written to solar developers:
“Reform threatens to pull solar subsidies over ‘desecration of countryside’”
Telegraph link.
Of course, he would not be able to cancel contracts, as he admitted in the wind case. I doubt whether developers are worried about this. There is also the fact that, however they are polling, the likelihood of Reform, er, forming, the next government is low. Probably <10% in my estimation.
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Of course it’s complicated, but it could stand nevertheless as a metaphor for net zero Britain:
“They live next to Peru’s largest solar complex – so why are they still in the dark?”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4ge1gw5zd8o
Each morning, Rosa Chamami wakes to flames licking at cardboard scraps in a makeshift stove in her yard.
The boxes she brought home once held 800,000 high-tech solar panels. Now, they fuel her fire.
Between 2018 and 2024, those panels were installed at Rubí and Clemesí, two massive solar plants in Peru’s Moquegua region, about 1,000 kilometres south of the capital, Lima. Together, they form the country’s largest solar complex – and one of the biggest in Latin America.
From her home in the small settlement of Pampa Clemesí, Rosa can see the rows of panels glowing under white floodlights. The Rubí plant is just 600 metres away.
Yet her home – and the rest of her village – remains in total darkness, unconnected to the grid the plant feeds into.
None of Pampa Clemesí’s 150 residents have access to the national power grid.
A few have solar panels donated by Rubí’s operator, Orygen, but most can’t afford the batteries and converters needed to make them work. At night, they use torches – or simply live in the dark….
…Each day, she walks around the village, hoping someone can spare a bit of electricity to charge her phone.…
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“‘Don’t go ahead with this solar farm'”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c6205w1kxj9o
Almost 500 people have signed a petition to halt plans for a 106-acre (43-hectare) solar farm in Cornwall.
Elgin Energy submitted a request for pre-application advice from Cornwall Council before submitting a full planning application for the 50-year project at Bocaddon Farm, Lanreath.
However, some residents said plans for the land, equivalent to 69 football pitches, would have a detrimental impact on communities across Lanreath and Pelynt, and that the company did not realise the “level of opposition and anger from local communities”, so it should “not go ahead with this solar farm”….
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“Solar farm could supply ‘a quarter of city’s homes'”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3dp0mne092o
“Could”, but won’t. Certainly not reliably, and definitely not in winter, when need and demand are greatest.
Plans for a solar farm that would have the capacity to power a quarter of the homes in Peterborough have been submitted.
FRV TH Powertek wants to install 100,000 solar panels across 80 hectares (about 200 acres) at Malice Farm, near Thorney, near Peterborough.
If approved, the solar farm would be in place for 40 years. Construction would take nearly a year.
The application lodged with Peterborough City Council states that the facility would power 22,550 homes….
If it goes ahead, more agricultural land will be given up so that taxpayers’ money in the form of subsidies can leach abroad:
FRV, a part of Abdul Latif Jameel Energy & founded in Spain in 2006, is a world leader in providing comprehensive renewable energy solutions with operations across 5 continents…
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Interesting report on the use of farmland for solar PV:
https://www.farminguk.com/news/top-farmland-being-lost-to-large-scale-solar-panels-report-warns_66887.html
Key quote: “The analysis shows that 59% of the country’s 38 operational solar developments generating over 30 megawatts are situated on farmland, with 31% of the total land covered by panels classed as the ‘best and most versatile’ (BMV) for agriculture—Grades 1 to 3a.”
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“Process to approve ‘monstrous’ solar farm ‘stinks'”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gl38995eeo
Plans to build a “monstrous'” solar farm “bigger than Monaco and Gibraltar combined” have been discussed at an “unusual” council meeting.
East Riding Council’s planning committee questioned the purpose of discussing plans for the Peartree Hill Solar Farm proposed for land east of Beverley, as it will in fact be decided by the government’s Planning Inspectorate.
The proposals for the 320MW farm, enough to power 136,000 homes, include a battery energy storage system.
Councillor Denis Healy, leader of the Liberal Democrats at the council, said: “It almost feels as though we’ve been dragged here just for the sake of it because of the requirements, just to be told what’s going to happen.“
The proposed 891 hectare (2,202 acre) site is larger than Monaco and Gibraltar combined, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
It said because the farm, earmarked for an area near Tickton, Meaux, and Weel, is more than 50MW it is deemed a “nationally significant infrastructure project” and has to be decided by the Secretary of State for Energy Security and New Zero rather than the local authority.
However, the council can choose to submit a report to voice its concerns and outline the impact the proposal could have on the area.
Healy feared submitting a report would make the council “complicit in this process”, adding: “I don’t want to be… I think it absolutely stinks.”
Labour councillor David Nolan said the site’s name sounded “rural, rustic” but the site instead represented “a monstrous mega sprawl of industrial panels“.
He also voiced concerns about the process by which the project could be approved, adding: “As elected councillors, I do think we have a role to represent residents and to vote on major planning applications – and this is as big as it gets.”…
Is Councillor Healy unaware of the contents of his party’s 2024 election manifesto?
https://www.libdems.org.uk/fileadmin/groups/2_Federal_Party/Documents/PolicyPapers/Manifesto_2024/For_a_Fair_Deal_-_Liberal_Democrat_Manifesto_2024.pdf
Page 26:
Accelerate the deployment of renewable power and deliver energy security by:
power, and supporting investment and innovation in tidal and wave power in
particular.
Page 14:
Increase investment in green infrastructure, including renewable energy…
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“Council leader defends his Grand Theft Auto parody“
South Norfolk’s leader is in trouble for creating a video showing himself blowing up a solar farm.
Just humour, or inciting others to commit criminal damage?
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“Solar farms threaten rare wildlife, say campaigners”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx27nd0kn2no
Rare wildlife habitats could be pushed “beyond the point of no return” by large solar farm developments, conservationists have warned.
Gwent Wildlife Trust said one of the UK’s largest solar farms, Llanwern Solar Farm, which was built on two Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), had contributed to a dip in bird, bat and insect numbers….
…More than 1,000 solar farms operate across the UK, according to UK government figures, while a further 800 have been granted planning permission.…
…Natalie Buttriss, chief executive of Gwent Wildlife Trust, said wildlife numbers had declined around the farm.
“It’s a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) – and the clue is in the name, it’s special for both people and wildlife,” she said.
“Lapwings weren’t returning to the site to breed and they’re very rare now as a species in the levels.
“We [also] found that bat populations were crashing – the insect mass has gone down,” she added.
Last year, a Welsh government report linked the solar farm to:
Gwent Wildlife Trust said concern was growing because several, larger solar farms had been proposed for the levels.…
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“Will farming under solar panels take off?”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c2en1yyp4d9o
Once you start reading, you realise this isn’t about the UK at all, but about India. And it turns out there are quite a few issues in India which – given the nature of the crops that can be grown under panels in India, but which would struggle in the UK – would probably be even greater in the UK:
...Siting solar panels above crops goes by the term agrivoltaics.
India would seem particularly suited to such innovation.…
…But despite the benefits, take up has been slow, around 40 projects are operating in India at the moment, according to the National Solar Energy Federation of India (NSEFI), which represents India’s solar power industry.
There are several challenges.
Not all crops will grow under solar panels. Depending on the layout, the panels reduce the light getting through by between 15% and 30%. Some denser layouts will block too much sun for staple crops including wheat, rice, soybeans or pulses.
“What works well are high-value crops with moderate or low-light needs, like green leafy vegetables, spices such as turmeric and ginger, and some flowers,” says Vivek Saraf, the founder and CEO of Delhi-based SunSeed, which specialises in agrivoltaics.
There’s also the issue of expense.
To allow farming underneath, the solar panels need to be at least 11ft (3.5m) off the ground. That makes them between 20% and 30% more expensive to install than panels on a regular solar farm, where they are much closer to the ground….
…The solar power companies want the government to step in with subsidies to make agrivoltaics more attractive.…
Isn’t that always the way?
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Mark, if 70 to 85% of incident light in a solar farm is hitting the ground, then it’s not very well designed, is it?
I asked the AI how much a solar farm reduces sunlight at the ground… it said 15-30%.
Then I asked it how much incident light reaches the ground under a solar farm… it said 30-50%.
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“Plans submitted for controversial solar farm”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0jq62q3p14o
A planning application has been submitted to build a controversial solar farm on more than 2,000 acres (809 hectares) of countryside.…
2,000 acres!
….Due to the scale of the plans, permission will be decided by Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Ed Miliband.…
That’s that, then.
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“Revealed: Europe losing 600 football pitches of nature and crop land a day
Investigation shows extent of green land lost across UK and mainland Europe to development from 2018 to 2023″
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/oct/01/revealed-europe-losing-600-football-pitches-of-nature-and-crop-land-a-day
Europe is losing green space that once harboured wildlife, captured carbon and supplied food at the rate of 600 football pitches a day, an investigation by the Guardian and partners has revealed.
Analysis of satellite imagery across the UK and mainland Europe over a five-year period shows the speed and scale with which green land is turning grey, consumed by tarmac for roads, bricks and mortar for luxury golf courses and housing developments….
It is indeed shocking. I await the results of the investigation to be carried out by the Guardian and partners into the loss of “green space that once harboured wildlife, captured carbon and supplied food” as a result of wind and solar farm developments in the UK.
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There is a single reference in that report to a wind farm development – in Greece. It doesn’t mention solar at all.
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The reference to capturing carbon was nonsense. Cropland does not capture carbon, or if it does, it does so on a seasonally-cyclical basis. The rich cropland on the English fens is releasing carbon, not capturing it. And a mature woodland does not capture carbon: it has reached a steady state. The only circumstance I can think of where they might have a point would be in plantation woodland, but even that is slated to be zeroed out when the timber is harvested.
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Still no sign of the Guardian understanding that solar and wind (and associated -pylons, BESS etc) infrastructure developments are damaging Britain’s wild places. Not a mention of either in this article:
“UK fifth-worst country in Europe for loss of green space to development
Exclusive: 1,680 football pitches of protected natural land in England, Wales and Northern Ireland lost in five years”
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/oct/02/uk-fifth-worst-country-in-europe-for-loss-of-green-space-to-development
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“Council to mount legal challenge over solar farm plan”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gzypz8q0go
Anglesey council has confirmed it will mount a legal challenge against the Welsh government’s decision to allow a solar farm development.
In August, Welsh government energy secretary Rebecca Evans approved the Alaw Môn scheme, which would see solar panels installed over 660 acres (267 hectares) near the island’s Llyn Alaw reservoir.
It has faced opposition from residents worried about the loss of agricultural land and was met with resistance from the authority, which claimed the Welsh government had gone against its own planning guidelines. Council leader Gary Pritchard said the authority was “disappointed and frustrated” by the decision….
660 acres!
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They’re not popular:
“Solar farm developer pressed over visual impact”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cgl1r5z6104o
Inspectors examining plans to build one of the UK’s largest solar farms have told the developer it was “very disappointing” to still be waiting for information on the visual impact on neighbouring properties.
A final public hearing has concluded into the Botley West development, which would cover about 1,000 hectares (2,471 acres) of Oxfordshire countryside.
Photovolt Development Partners (PVDP) told the hearing it had carried out a more detailed assessment, which it would submit before a November deadline.
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband is expected to make a final decision in 2026.
At the three-day hearing, held at The King’s Centre in Osney Mead in Oxford, inspectors asked how many properties would be in “very close proximity” – within 164ft and 820ft (50m and 250m) – of the development but PVDP were unable to provide the figures….
“More than 1,000 people have say on huge solar farm”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cg426e13973o
…The proposed Green Hill Solar Farm would cover about 2,965 acres (1,200 hectares) of land south and west of Wellingborough and north of Northampton.…
…Several of the comments from members of the public and businesses, external oppose the development.…
Several? Out of more than twelve hundred? Why so coy, BBC?
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“Ed Miliband approves UK’s biggest solar farm at Lincolnshire site
Tillbridge solar farm will be built in county where Reform UK’s anti-renewables agenda has rising support”
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/oct/14/ed-miliband-approves-uk-biggest-solar-farm-at-lincolnshire-site
There was never a chance he would do anything else.
…The 700-megawatt project will be the largest ever built in the UK, covering a little over 1,200 hectares. It will be the ninth solar project with “nationally significant” status – meaning the decision to allow it is decided by central government – to be approved since Labour returned to power in July 2024.…
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The approval of the Tillbridge scheme was on R4’s Six o’clock News. The report was from Justin Rowlatt, and despite the usual claims of households supplied, it was surprisingly balanced. Some poor soul whose house will soon be surrounded was allowed a soundbite. And was there a slight nod to scepticism when Rowlatt said of the number of households that would be powered: “…when the sun is shining…”?
At about 21:35 into the half hour, if anyone can tune in to BBC Sounds.
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“Fears over 2,700-acre ‘mega-solar’ scheme in Devon”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3dn9nxn2jeo
One local said:
“I’m not against renewable energy, but there has to be a balance… It just feels like it’s all too much.”
When will they wake up? Until net zero is ditched, this stuff won’t go away. And it’s no good claiming to be in favour of renewables, but just not where you live. You can’t be opposed to it where you live, but happy for others to suffer it. This is how it works – divide and rule.
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“‘Cornwall is being sold off to hit net zero'”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy5qk73qx72o
A Cornwall farmer claims the county is being “sold off” in a bid to hit net zero energy targets after plans for a 125,000-panel solar farm were approved.
The scheme, near the A30 at Carland Cross, was turned down last year by Cornwall Council, but has since been approved by national inspectors after an appeal by the developers.
Campaigner Marie Wills said she tried for years to overturn the solar application, and said she felt “the government are trying to sell Cornwall off just to hit net-zero”….
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They just keep coming:
“New consultation launched over major solar scheme”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clyl1741xqlo
A fresh consultation has been launched into proposals for what, if approved, would be one of the UK’s largest solar energy schemes.
Energy developer Island Green Power wants to build the 500MW Light Valley Solar project, consisting of seven solar farms on a 2,520 acre (1,020 hectare) site, between York and Selby.…[my emphasis].
and
“Anti-solar group fears voices will not be heard”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cly9qggywj9o
…Energy firm Aukera is behind the Tasway Energy Park proposal for a site near Long Stratton, in Norfolk, which would cover 3,600 acres….[my emphasis].
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“Solar farm size of 130 football pitches approved”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c17pr7qr5l5o
A solar farm the size of 130 football pitches has been given the go-ahead after a councillor said it was “inevitable” it would be approved on appeal.
Applicant RWE Renewables said the 214-acre plot at Pickwell near Melton Mowbray will power more than 25,000 homes...
Two points. First, BBC, reporting that it will power a certain number of homes, without qualification, is misinformation. How many will it power in December and overnight?
Second, what is the point of local planning committees, if they rubber stamp these obligations in the knowledge that whatever the merits or demerits of the application, a refusal of planning permission will inevitably be overturned on appeal?
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“Solar farm the ‘size of 40 football pitches’ approved”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crl204x1p22o
A solar farm, the size of 40 football pitches, could be built near a small rural village.…
…The Council for the Protection of Rural England claimed the proposals were “not in the right place” and “would transform open farmland into an industrial zone.”
Applicant Michael Breslaw said the solar farm would “provide 5,000 homes a year with clean electricity“…
Wow. 5,000 homes. And in winter?
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“Concern over solar farms ‘triple the size of Gatwick'”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c98n6d3gz93o
An area of Romney Marsh more than three times bigger than Gatwick Airport could be lost to huge solar farms, claims one countryside charity.
CPRE said that, if approved, the Shepway, South Brooks and South Kent Energy Parks would damage an area of Kent containing both “unique and fragile wildlife habitats and some of the UK’s most productive farmland”.
“The transition to renewables does not need to come at the cost of the countryside,” said CPRE Kent director Andrea Griffiths…..
Does not need to, but very definitely is.
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“Council publicly opposes solar farm plans”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cjdrxegegk3o
A council has publicly declared its opposition to a proposed solar farm, saying it would “disrupt local life” and “deliver little real benefit” to residents.
Whitestone Solar Farm wants to install sola panels on three sites in South Yorkshire, one of which is just outside of Conisbrough, capable of powering 250,000 homes.
However, a motion tabled by City of Doncaster Council’s Reform UK councillor Rachel Reed calling on the developers to withdraw its plan and scale back any future proposal was passed with cross-party support....
I wonder why the BBC didn’t run with the headline “Cabinet member teams up with Reform UK Council to oppose inappropriate renewable energy development”? Tucked away a long way down the article is this little gem:
Defence Secretary John Healey, MP for Rawmarsh & Conisbrough, has also opposed the plan and called it the “wrong scheme in the wrong place”.
Needless to say:
However, due to the solar farm being a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project, the final decision will be decided by the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero – Doncaster North MP Ed Miliband.
So that’s that, then.
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The decision will be decided! They could have run that through AI to tidy up, if they can’t write in English themselves.
Miliband may say no to avoid cabinet strife – there are clearly far more solar projects than will ever be built – he said hopefully – so a few can be turned down without denting the overall plan. The denting of the overall plan may come instead as more people begin to realise that renewables are not as good as they were told. The threat of Reform generally may worry developers – though I don’t see how they could cancel agreed-on contracts.
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Today’s Daily Sceptic leads with an article on the horrors contained in Labour’s Planning and Infrastructure Bill:
https://dailysceptic.org/2025/12/02/labours-plan-to-turn-englands-best-farmland-over-to-developers-is-about-to-come-to-pass/
It’s the stuff of nightmares for farmers and lovers of the countryside. Hopefully the article will be open to read. If not, it might be available elsewhere: “This article originally appeared on the Rational Forum Substack.“
PS. If there’s a better thread for this comment, please feel free to move it.
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