Charged-up residents to fight solar farm plan

PROPOSALS TO INSTALL SOLAR PANELS ON 173 ACRES OF LAND IN LULLINGTON HAVE BEEN MET WITH OBJECTIONS FROM VILLAGERS WHO SAY THE PLANT IS OUT OF KEEPING AND WOULD SPOIL ANCIENT GRAVEYARD TRAIL

RESIDENTS in an idyllic South Derbyshire village are to contest proposals for a 173-acre solar farm which they say is a “complete eyesore” and will have “zero benefit” for the community.

RESIDENTS in an idyllic village have launched a fight against plans for a solar farm they say would be a “complete eyesore” on their “unspoilt environment”.

Residents of Lullington, in South Derbyshire, recently held a parish meeting to launch their objections to the installation of solar panels on 173 acres of agricultural land north of the village. If approved, the solar farm will have an export capacity of 50MW, which could power 15,000 homes a year.

However, a spokesman for the villagers said: “We are proud of our village and cherish that we are to live in such an unspoilt environment due to the conservation area status. If this application were to be accepted, it would be a complete eyesore and out of keeping with Lullington and the adjacent villages.

“Our opposition is not based on nimbyism or a luddite approach to renewables. We respect the need for renewable energy, but our key argument is that the application of this particular technology does not fit with the environment at the proposed site.

“Using eco-crops to feed AD plants would make far more sense as it has no impact on the landscape and can be used with crop rotation to utilise the ground to produce both food and energy. In short, this proposal has zero benefit for us as a community, but has a massive impact on the residents, our heritage, our landscape and our wildlife.”

WHY RESIDENTS ARE SO UPSET ABOUT THE PLANS

In their official objection to the South Derbyshire District Council planning committee, residents say the solar farm would visually affect three of the five approaches to the village.

They also said in their objection it would alter the character of the socalled “coffin trail” historically used to carry the dead to the village graveyard.

It reads: “Running through the site is a public footpath known locally as the coffin trail this historic right of way was used in the time before St Mary’s church in Coton in the Elms (pre-1840) to bring the dead to be buried in Lullington’s All Saints Church (built in the 14th century).

This path will be fenced off on either side as it passes through the solar farm, altering this historic path’s character on both sides with the views obscured.”

In response, Island Green Power has suggested creating a grassed area along the trail and setting the solar panels back.

The villagers’ objection also states Lullington has less than 150 inhabitants, with a significant proportion either retired from, or still employed in, agriculture.

The objection says: “The proposed fields have produced wheat, barley, chipping potatoes and rapeseed, while, in addition, maize and rye grass have been grown for use in the production of electricity through a nearby AD (biodigester) plant.

“Turning good-quality agricultural land into a solar farm denies employment on the land for our community.”

They say irrespective of the mitigating actions to encourage wildlife, the fencing will inhibit the movement of badgers, roe deer, muntjac, foxes and hares all species they claim are common across the site.

WHAT ISLAND GREEN POWER HAS TO SAY

A spokesman for Island Green Power said: “There is an urgent need for renewable energy to meet the country’s commitment to zero carbon by 2050. Solar farms have a very important role to play as an efficient technology in meeting our national energy needs over the coming decades.

“Island Green Power, the applicant, have a track record of delivering solar schemes sensitively in this country and across the world.

“Solar farms in the UK have been proven to be an efficient and reliable source of renewable energy that deliver local environmental benefits and create new jobs.

“This development would provide renewable energy to power the equivalent of 15,000 homes each year at a time when a rapid increase in renewable energy generation is essential to prevent climate change.

“The development has been designed sympathetically to its surroundings and would enhance habitats on site including an increase in forested areas.

“Island Green Power takes the potential for impacts on local communities very seriously and seeks to work with and address any comments wherever possible.

“The applicant and its team of specialists have worked proactively with all stakeholders, throughout the design development process and planning process.”

■■Opinion: Solar farms may not look attractive, but they are pretty useful – P11