Little Chalfield solar farm proposal rejected

PLANS to build a 25 hectare solar farm in Little Chalfield has been rejected, to the relief of local residents and campaigners. 

At a recent Wiltshire Council planning meeting, councillors voted by five votes to four to reject the proposal, subject to appeal, for what would have been a 12 megawatt solar farm built on 25 hectares of land near Broughton Gifford for a period of 25 years.

The reason cited for dismissing the application by developers SunEdison and Solar Planning Limited was because it was felt the solar farm was dominant and uncharacteristic for the area.

The decision follows a protest recently by more than 100 residents and campaigners including Wiltshire Protect, a group opposing the construction of so many solar farms in the local area.

Little Chalfield resident  and campaigner Phillip Addis said, “We are pleased because we feel it is the right decision and we have had excellent community support.

“The government has been clear that they do not want solar developments on green field sites and that community support is vital. This application failed on both counts.  There was also the potential for a significant cumulative impact as a result of the number of applications within a few miles of Melksham, earning it the title of UK’s solar capital.

“Alongside a professional view from a leading local landscape architect that questioned the suitability of the site, some compelling statistics were presented at the council meeting, which indicated that Wiltshire could exceed its 2020 renewable targets by 2015 which is great, but that would seem to be primarily as a result of green field developments.

“We are keen to see Wiltshire Council review their targets and then some of the more appropriate brown field site applications considered before more valuable agricultural land is taken out of production.”

Wiltshire Protect, a campaign group set up to oppose so many solar farms being built locally is pleased that the application was rejected. Jack Churchill from the group said, “It is important that solar farms are properly scrutinised and it’s good to see some of them being refused.  On the whole these are seriously large industrial developments which will be parked in the landscape for a generation or longer.  As well as impacting the visual amenity, the agricultural output will also dramatically decrease.

“The proposed Chalfield solar farm would have been the third solar farm for Broughton Gifford which has 125 acres already approved.  One area cannot accommodate so many solar farms of this scale without the landscape character changing from rural to industrial.  The people in this area and all around Melksham are rightly saying Enough is Enough!”

Developers SunEdison and Solar Planning Limited now have an opportunity to appeal the decision to reject their plans. It is believed they are exploring what steps to take next.