Huge concerns raised over Coventry solar panel plans
A farmer says he'll lose his farm if plans go ahead.
Last updated 20th Feb 2024
Huge concerns have been raised over Coventry council’s plans for a large solar farm on fields by people’s homes. A farmer says he will lose his business if it goes ahead and groups set up to protect countryside have hit out over building on green belt land.
Fears over the negative impact on residents from the panels have also been raised and the plans sent in last year sparked an outcry among locals. Dozens of people have lodged objections and almost 250 signed a petition against the scheme which councillors will vote on next week (29 February.)
The council which owns the land off Lentons Lane wants to put 65,000 panels, equipment including 13 inverters and cabling on the fields. If approved the solar farm would be in place for 40 years and generate 30 MW of electricity on a summer’s day, plans claim.
But both Rugby and Coventry planning officers have recommended the farm gets the go-ahead. A report for a meeting in Coventry next week admitted the farm will cause harm to the greenbelt and the area’s landscape but said the benefits of the renewable energy would outweigh this.
Farmer faces losing business “overnight”
Edward Dewes has been a tenant of Lentons Lane Farm since 1967. He told the council the plans would make his 56-year-old business unviable as he’d lose 105 acres of land and it would leave his home surrounded by solar panels.
“If planning is approved, my business will be extinguished overnight as the development requires virtually the whole farm, ” he wrote in a letter of objection. He also hit out at claims that the scheme would be compatible with farming and land could be returned for this use in four decades’ time, and pointed out 32% of it is within the “best and most versatile” land class.
Mr Dewes called the idea that sheep can graze under the panels a “fiction” as he said a lack of sunlight will cause “negligible” grass production. The soil structure will also be damaged by the development due to the lack of sunlight and waterlogging from rainfall dripping off panels, he told the council.
He claimed wildlife living on the fields such as badgers and great crested newts will be disturbed by the scheme and pointed to planned two metre high fencing. “Rather than enhancing habitat for wildlife the site will become something resembling a collection of prison compounds,” he wrote.
Speaking at a planning meeting in Rugby earlier this month, Mr Dewes also highlighted that 60 homes on the lane would be just 30 metres from the nearest panel. “Nowhere in the UK has planning permission been granted for a solar scheme this close to so many houses,” he claimed.
Groups set up to protect countryside have also hit out at the plans. They said “special circumstances” haven’t been shown that would allow building on the site.
A letter to the council from the region’s Local Access Forum added that Lentons Lane Farm is long established and near areas known for their wildlife. They claimed the bid “fundamentally conflicts” with the reason for putting land in Green Belt, as it would strongly reduce the area’s openness and agricultural use.
Security fencing, CCTV, light and noise pollution and extra traffic would add to the plan’s negative impact on locals, they added. They raised fears approving it would “open the floodgates” for similar schemes elsewhere in the green belt.
The Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) Warwickshire told the council they agree on the threat of climate change and need for renewables. “But a headlong rush is no way to go about it, approving the siting of (industrial) solar farms on land that is currently being used to protect the nation’s food security, rather than on underutilised or brownfield land,” they added.
The petition from locals says the land “means a lot” to the community and walking there boosts people’s physical and mental health. Plans also say the scheme will have “major effects” on the views of residents in Lentons Lane due to their closeness to the development, and people using a nearby canal walk.
At year 15 and with mitigation planting this effect on these groups will still be “moderate,” it said. It added: “residents at Lenton’s Lane Farm, who will be enclosed by the proposed development, will experience major effects during construction and at years 1 and 15.”
Plans have been hit with more than 60 formal objections from residents and 112 people also signed a petition put forward by councillor Linda Bigham, according to the council’s report.
But Coventry council planners say the wider benefits of the panels outweigh the impact on green belt and the landscape. In a report on the plans for next week’s meeting, officers said land could be returned to its former use after 40 years and said soil would be disturbed in only a relatively small part of the area.
Natural England haven’t objected to the plans, they added. And the farm would generate up to 30 MW of electricity and save over 7,000 tonnes of carbon per year, the report claimed, helping to combat climate change and supporting the UK’s transition to a low carbon economy.
On the reason for choosing the site, it said: “Solar farms are required to meet specific site selection and location requirements to ensure they are suitable for development. The application site has been chosen for its close proximity to a grid connection location with sufficient capacity.”
The report also claimed the solar farm would have benefits for locals such as educational visits, improving wildlife habitat and footpaths, and result in a biodiversity “net gain.” There have been no objections from groups which have to be consulted by law, it added.
Due to the number of objections, councillors on the council’s planning committee will vote on the scheme next week. Asked for comment on the concerns raised, a Coventry council spokesperson said: “Solar farms are commonly erected on land used for farming and there are examples of those that continue farming activities albeit by diversifying and adapting to the changing environment, for example sheep could still be grazed and there are a range of alternative crops that are compatible with solar farms.
“The site, which was carefully selected to deliver 30mw of green electricity, is close to a sub-station and at the end of its life will remain part of the green belt. We have also listened to local people and as a result have removed around 8,000 panels – all of those closest to homes.
“There are no known health risks and solar farms as well as solar panels on homes and other buildings are increasingly popular and being used to provide clean, green energy, vital as part of our drive to limit the impact and consequences of climate change.”