Solar farm gets the go ahead at Beaulieu estate HUBERT MURPHY
A SOLAR farm on over eight hectares of land at Beaulieu House has been given the go-ahead by Louth County Council.
The project will consist of a 5MWp solar farm, with a maximum export capacity of 4MW and comprising of approximately 20,000 photovoltaic panels on ground mounted frames.
The site will also house four transformer stations, a communications building, CCTV security cameras and perimeter security fencing (2 metre high).
Observations were made in relation to the development, including one from the Drogheda Port Company.
They expressed comment on a number of facets, including the glint effect on passing ships on the Boyne.
They say that one million tonnes of cargo annually pass up the river, featuring some 700 vessel movements.
They say the bridge on the vessels could be 30m above the waterline, the equivalent of a 9 storey building. They said the Glint Report done for the project didn’t take sufficient cognisance of the nearby shipping.
But a reponse from the developers stated that due to ‘favourable local topography and intervening screening from obstacles’ the panels cannot be seen from the river.
The Port Company also remarked that glint from the panels could impact on the Coastguard helicopter and general air traffic into Dublin Airport plus they ask could electrical and magnetic fields effect marine navigation.
Again the developers stated that it wasn’t feasible to model every possible flight direction and height of a rescue helicopter while ‘no glint will be visible’ for pilots on their final approach to any existing runway at Dublin Airport. While plans flying overhead may observe the panels, it will be for just a short time.