The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Residents launch fight against solar farm bid to protect arable land
Fertile farmland in Angus could soon be covered with solar panels – but members of a community south of Forfar think the global food crisis should prevent the move.
Local resident Mrs Shanks describes the Angus region as “the bread basket of Scotland”.
She says arable fields near her home should be reserved for food production at a time when Ukraine, known as the bread basket of Europe, is in crisis.
“These fields, in the 30 years I have lived in our house, have been agricultural fields,” she says.
“They’re high-yield crop fields.”
The fields just metres from her home could soon be covered in solar panels after a company called Industria Resources lodged plans for a 30 megawatt solar farm at the site, near the village of Kingsmuir.
“This is not the right place,” added Mrs Shanks, one of a group of residents who are opposing the proposed solar farm.
They plan to form a local action group and have distributed leaflets in the area to make locals aware of the plans.
They are also raising awareness of a national petition aiming to protect farmland amid a growing number of solar developments.
Industria Resources wants to cover nearly 150 acres of farmland with solar panels.
The plans for the Cotton of Lownie development are in the early stages. Solar panels would be installed over three fields – two smaller ones west of the B9128 and a large field to the east of the road linking Forfar and Carnoustie.
Livestock would still be able to graze in the fields while the panels are in place, and Angus Council planners say “any impacts as a result of construction and decommissioning would be temporary”.
The loss of land for crops, however, is just one of the residents’ concerns.
They also raise issues including road safety and impact on health, and claim the developer has not engaged adequately with the community.
Mrs Shanks added: “I can stress that none of us is anti-solar farms if they’re in the right place.
“Solar is necessary, but not at the cost of prime arable land, and provided other safety issues are correctly addressed.”
Meanwhile, about 20 miles east of Cotton of Lownie, residents are also worried about the impact of a proposed a solar farm.
The controversial Berryhill development is in the hands of a Scottish Government reporter.
On July 5, the reporter will carry out a site visit as he considers the proposal.
Solar2 is appealing Angus councillors’ decision to reject its plans to cover arable land with 152,000 solar panels.
A spokesperson for Save and Protect the Angus Rural Environment (Spare) Berryhill also raised the issue of food security.
He said the group is “concerned about the loss of good land for food production”.
Factors driving global food supplies are complex with no definitive answers.
But Dr Alexandra Morel, an ecosystem scientist at Dundee University, said the issue raised questions.
She said replacing productive agricultural land with solar panels “would seem to be an unfortunate choice”.
However, she said using less productive land could have a “net benefit”.
“I do not know the extent to which Scottish farmers could make a difference in the specific case of wheat production from Ukraine.
“But decisions made around the use of productive land should be thinking about these issues.”