Sheep will graze among the panels
Continuing Agricultural Use
The land will stay in agricultural use. Panels would cover around 37% of the area, with only approximately 2% of the land disturbed by the footprint of the mounting frames. Species-rich native grass and wildflower species sown across the site would flourish in spring and summer with sheep grazing among the panels during the winter.
The land will effectively be in an extended break crop for 25 years which should allow full restoration of the quality and structure of the soil. Specific benefits include:
improving water retention and reducing erosion and flooding
improving water quality, reducing the cost of filtering out agri-chemicals
sequestering carbon over a 20-year period
Tests will be carried out on the soil to record its improvement over the term of the solar farm.
At the end of the solar farm’s life all hardware will be dismantled, removed offsite and mostly recycled and the site returned to its current state.
All hedgerows and trees will be retained resulting in no permanent negative effects on the landscape.
Therefore, the temporary use of the land, the relatively small size of the project, its reversible nature and the continued agricultural production would not lead to the loss or significant development of agricultural land.
The project will follow the National Farmers Union and BRE Solar Centre Agricultural Good-Practice Guidance for Solar Farms.