How Green are Solar Farms - the 'biodiversity' argument

Lightrock makes much of the promised "biodiversity gain" which it will deliver from a plan that amounts to about 20 bird boxes, some extra woodpiles and wildflower strips and a few hedgehog gates across the entire 128 acres. The calculation also apparently ignores any damage done to the biodiversity in the surrounding area during the construction period or the threat the installation would pose to deer and other large mammals (blocks their normal paths) and birds of prey (lose their hunting grounds).

We acknowledge that some of the fields themselves do not currently support a huge amount of biodiversity because they are quite intensively farmed but making use of the Government's Sustainable Farming Incentive could help to improve the situation at the same time as preserving the land for food production and without destroying important landscapes. Further, if we look at the wider area, the AONB and National Park both deliver a range of bio-diversity initiatives while many local residents support wildlife in a myriad of ways. This is not a brownfield area that requires transformation.

Lightrock also claims that sheep will be grazed under the panels. This is a common assertion in solar farm applications but sheep are rarely seen in practice - they were promised at Boscar (near Husthwaite on the A19) but none have ever materialised. This is probably largely due to the fact that sheep need to be looked after which means resource and cost which the operators of these electricity plants do not want to commit. Despite its huge size and enormous battery storage capability, Woolpots is to be unmanned with contractors charged with maintenance only expected to visit once a week.
Further grazing grassland under the panels with sheep will apparently destroy the lifecycle of many meadow species of butterfly. And in practice we understand it is common for solar farm operators to resort to intensive use of pesticides and aggressive mowing to keep all vegetation clear of the panels, often to the dismay of the farmer who has leased the land.

Finally, despite its 'green credentials', Lightrock has admitted that it will play no part in managing the site so cannot ensure compliance with any promised mitigation steps, including its biodiversity plan. Evidence from other solar farms suggests that the applicant company will be dissolved as soon as the farm is operational and the company behind the applicant funding the development (in our case EcoNergy) often sells the solar farm after a few years which means that the Planning Authority struggles to enforce planning conditions in the long-term.

The Boscar site is not screened down the A19 by new planting as promised and the site is generally no longer being well-maintained because the operator (a joint venture involving Warrington Council) has gone into liquidation. At the public meeting in February Econergy acknowledged that it had not ever actually managed a solar farm, but had just built them for others to operate.

Is 'Green Energy' the real objective? Is there enough 'public benefit'?

The primary driver for the siting of Woolpots Solar Farm is proximity to the Husthwaite sub-station. It is possible to connect into a substation from a considerable distance (at least 7 miles) but Lightrock and EcoNergy have admitted in a public meeting that they want to be right next door in order to maximise their profits. They are therefore not interested in any of the far more appropriate sites for solar in the area and they do not appear to care about the impact on the local community or on the countryside which is visited by so many.

EcoNergy is a 'renewables investor' listed on the Tel Aviv stock exchange. According to its own press releases, its focus for the UK is on energy storage systems, as well as some solar PV. We believe that EcoNergy wants a battery storage capacity at Woolpots in excess of the total maximum output of the panels in order to be able to buy in electricity from the grid and sell back to the grid at peak times - so nothing to do with solar energy generation. Large scale storage facilities pose significant safety risks and must be positioned carefully and away from centres of population - it is very unlikely that permission would be given for a huge BESS on its own just outside a village and we feel very strongly that Lightrock/EcoNergy should not be allowed to bypass normal planning scrutiny because it is described as 'associated infrastructure' for a solar farm. Many solar farms do not have such large scale storage capabilities.

There is also no benefit to the local community in terms of security of electricity supply or price. It is not even guaranteed that the electricity generated from Woolpots will go to homes in Hambleton.

And, despite the huge area to be covered in panels, they will, even at their most efficient, generate less electricity than could be delivered by one off-shore wind turbine.

How Green are Solar Farms - the carbon emissions and human rights arguments

While clearly a more carbon friendly source of energy compared to fossil fuels, solar panels and associated infrastructure, particularly batteries, do have a carbon footprint and this is far more significant than other renewables. Many of the panels in current use have been manufactured in China or the USA where there is a heavy use of fossil fuels in their production. Transportation and installation of the panels and other infrastructure also requires energy, so again the distance travelled will make a difference to the carbon emissions.

There is also well-publicised evidence that the solar panel industry in China has high exposure to supply chain compromise by human rights abuses including child labour. And there are different geo-political and environmental concerns about the sourcing of some of the components in developing countries, in particular precious metals used in batteries. Lightrock has not yet provided any information regarding the source and precise make of the panels or the batteries.

There are also significant concerns regarding the life-span of the panels and what happens to them after use. Although they are claimed to last 20+ years, many operators will replace panels prematurely to maintain maximum efficiency and profits leading to an alarming growth of discarded solar panels. Recycling options are limited and often require transportation long-distance. Again, Lightrock has not yet provided information on the recycling capabilities of the panels intended for Woolpots.

Given the Government's focus on off-shore wind turbines - which are far far more efficient - and small-scale nuclear, it is likely that huge solar farms will be seen as outdated in a few years and therefore a wasteful use of land - but the scar on the community will last potentially forever