A speaker from JBM Solar came to our last meeting to tell us about their proposal to build a solar farm between Barlestone and Nailstone in Leicestershire. The planned solar farm would provide clean energy for 22,000 homes, while also managing the site to improve biodiversity.
After the meeting, we spent some time reading the planning documents and we also visited the site before deciding to support the planning application. You can find our letter to Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council planning committee below.
If you have time before 10th May, we encourage you to visit the online planning application and submit a supportive comment. (You have to register, but it only takes a moment.) Short comments will still make a difference! You could use some of our points below or just write a couple of sentences about why you want to see more renewable energy being generated.
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RE:
21/01395/FUL | Installation and operation of solar farm at Church Farm, Washpit
Lane, Barlestone, Nuneaton, Leicestershire CV13 0EH
Dear
Planning Committee,
We are
writing to express our support for the above planning application.
We were
pleased to see that Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council passed a motion to
recognise the climate emergency in July 2019[1].
At the time, you noted that urgent action was required to limit the effects of
global warming on people around the world. In the almost three years that have
passed since then, the situation has only become clearer. There have been more
extreme weather events, with wild fires, floods and hurricanes devastating
communities in many countries. Currently, the dangerous heatwave in India[2]
and the prolonged drought in Kenya[3]
are both threatening lives. The latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change[4]
provides a stark warning that carbon emissions need to start falling very soon
if we are to avoid an unliveable future for large parts of the planet. We
cannot continue to rely on fossil fuels for energy.
We have
spent some time learning more about the proposal for a solar farm between
Barlestone and Nailstone before making a decision that we would support the
planning application. We met the project manager, Robin Johnson, and asked a
lot of questions about why the site was chosen and how it would be managed when
the solar panels are installed. We visited the site ourselves to look at the
condition of the soil and the species of plants that are present. Finally, we
also looked into some of the national debate about solar farms.
We are now
convinced that this site is appropriate for a solar farm to generate clean
energy and that the proposed management will lead to an increase in
biodiversity.
Solar panels
provide the cheapest electricity in history, according to the International
Energy Agency[5].
They can be installed quickly, in contrast to fossil fuel or nuclear power
plants. When generating, they make no noise and create no pollution. They do
not require imported fuels to operate, instead using a source of energy
available to everyone. They require only small amounts of maintenance. When
they are no longer needed, solar farms can be decommissioned without leaving
behind lasting damage. The site could be returned to agriculture, hopefully
with restored soils. In a climate emergency, and when we are facing a
cost-of-living crisis with rapidly increasing energy prices, we should be
rolling out as many solar panels as possible in the UK.
The soil of
the chosen site appears to be depleted, making it unsuitable for agriculture
without large chemical inputs. This use of fertiliser and pesticides has
severely limited the biodiversity of plant life. On our visit, we saw a small
number of mainly nitrogen-hungry species growing in the hedgerow, which will
support a limited range of insect and bird life. Removing these chemical inputs
and seeding the fields with meadow flowers, as well as planting more trees and
hedges, should significantly improve the habitat.
We were
pleased to see that JBM Solar also plan to support the local community by
making the solar farm accessible to walkers to appreciate the wildlife,
providing educational facilities on site and supplying rooftop solar panels for
community buildings. If this planning application is passed, as we very much
hope it will be, we look forward to visiting in future to see the quiet generation
of clean energy and the improved natural habitat.
Yours
faithfully,
Hannah
Wakley
Co-ordinator
on behalf of Leicester Friends of the Earth
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