Historic farmland faces an industrial transformation, says Peter Neal, president of the Sherborne & District CPRE
We’re all for green energy, but without a more nuanced solar policy, we are in danger of desecrating valued, productive arable countryside, nurtured and loved over years. Increased electricity demand will result in 600 miles of pylons installed in Britain over the next few years, as we change the structure of our energy generation and supply network to more visible, localised bases such as solar farms.
What does this mean for Dorset countryside lovers and rural communities? The CPRE is particularly concerned about the effect on our landscape.
Decarbonising may be a key policy at Number 10, but at what cost to our heritage, our rights of way and our agricultural systems? Should we run headlong into building solar farms? What other choices do we have?
In aiming for renewables, should we abandon the basic democratic principles of consultation in our planning process? Should viable arable land be a focus for energy supply generation – or are there better alternatives, such as rooftop solar?
Land is a finite resource, as the National Parks movement recognised when it ring-fenced key regions, and designations such as the former Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (now National Landscapes), were introduced. Even King Charles’s favourite gardener, Alan Titchmarsh, said in the Times last month that solar on viable arable was “bonkers” and should be avoided.
Is there any direct and local community benefit?
All too often, the energy is taken away from the site where it is generated. Why should people in rural areas be forced to live among battery-farmed fields, given concerns about dangerous battery fires, without more extensive consultation?
In their desire to secure lucrative lease-outs to energy conglomerates, landowners are often complicit in depriving communities of the chance of expressing their concerns on projects.
Dorset CPRE would argue that there are not enough checks and balances to achieve this energy transition – and many local groups feel the same. They argue for projects to be based away from valued landscapes and suggest that, for example, the boundary of motorway networks would be more appropriate.
Loss of amenity and arable land
At Wyke Farm near Sherborne, there is currently a proposal for a huge solar farm on a 400-acre site. Owned by the Ilchester Estates, it is being leased out to German multi-national energy company RWE, based in Essen. The land was described as mainly Grade 2 when sold a few years ago – this is “best and most versatile” – and CPRE believes it should not be built on.
Historical importance
Many in Sherborne, Bradford Abbas and their surrounding villages are very angry: the valley would be irredeemably diminished and its historical legacy placed in an industrial, not a landscape context.
This land has thousands of years of history. There are Roman villas in the ground. Civil War battles were fought here – and soldiers buried. The Duke of Wellington’s right-hand man, Viscount Rowland Hill, and the discoverer of the circulation of blood, William Harvey, both owned and walked these fields. King Ise gave this land to the Bishop of Sherborne, Aldhelm, to farm in 705, and it has been farmed ever since. The land that filled the majestic barns for the Sherborne clergy now faces being ringfenced by steel mesh, concrete, glass, portacabins, CCTV cameras and mud. There are important Grade II* listed buildings in close proximity, which should be protected.
Overdevelopment
Because a large amount of the land earmarked is on a south-facing slope, the nearby north-facing properties in Thornford would lose their rural views. Thornford and Bradford Abbas will become villages “next to the solar farm”. House prices will inevitably fall, and not just on those overlooking the site.
There are already three solar installations within a few miles of Wyke Farm. Do we really need a further glass and steel reminder that large corporations can push into our lives like a battering ram, simply to reward RWE and its shareholders.Dorset Council has said: ‘the planning authority concludes that the proposed development is likely to result in significant environmental impacts.’
A local resident says: ‘This development is the wrong approach. Home insulation should come first, with rooftop, car park, rail track and water-sited solar panels. Surely we need to increase our food production capacity, especially if crop yields are dropping due to temperature increase and extreme weather events?’
Toxic legacy
And what about when these solar farms come to the end of their life? What happens to the ecological health of the land? PV solar panels are primarily made of silicon, but they can also contain metals such as cadmium, lead and tellurium. Over time, exposure to UV radiation, temperature fluctuations and moisture can degrade these materials, leading to the leaching of toxic substances into the soil and groundwater.
Please join WASA (Wyke Against Solar On Arable) and fight now. Write to your parish council, district councillors and your MP.
Send pledges of financial support to me on peter.neal21@outlook.com – these can be ringfenced in CPRE funds and reimbursed if RWE drops the application.
Join a pre-Christmas protest walk on 8th December at 2pm along the site path to see what they may destroy. Check our Instagram link – wykeagainstsolaronarable – for updates. Please make your voice heard!
We need to stop corruption vile leaders from sling out until its irreversible