Issue - meetings

REPORT OF THE DEVELOPMENT AND CONSERVATION MANAGER

Ground  mounted  solar  photovoltaic  (PV)  farm  including  battery  energystorage; continued agriculturaluse, ancillaryinfrastructure, securityfencing, landscaping provision, ecologicalenhancements andassociated works(as amended). 

RESOLVED: That application 22/00741/FP be GRANTED planning permission subject to the reasons and conditions set out in the report of the Development and Conservation Manager.

Audio recording: 2 hours 21 minutes and 35 seconds

The Senior Planning Officer presented the report in respect of application 22/00741/FP supported by a visual presentation consisting of photographs and plans.

The following Members asked points of clarification:

·       Councillor Ruth Brown

·       Councillor Elizabeth Dennis

In response to the questions, the Senior Planning Officer stated that:

·       The construction traffic to the site would be limited to two articulated lorries per day and this would be enforced by a condition. If the traffic was thought to be more, the application would be referred to the Enforcement team.

·       The nearest grid connection point was 5k from the site.

·       There was minimal hedge removal proposed for access to the site.

The Chair invited Mr James Colegrave to speak against the application. Mr Colegrave thanked the Chair for the opportunity and provided the Committee with a verbal presentation, including that:

·       The Bygrave action group was set up by the Parish Council and would support a solar farm in Bygrave, as long as it was in the correct location.

·       This site would dominate the area, which was too large and exposed. The field is grade 2 arable farmland which would be lost.

·       The adjacent roads were not safe for construction traffic, with heavy traffic on the nearby A507 and blind bends on smaller roads.

·       There would also be a constant humming noise from the site, with no grid connection plan.

The Chair thanked Mr Colegrave for his presentation and invited Ms Julie Stothard to speak against the application. Ms Stothard thanked the Chair for the opportunity and provided the Committee with a verbal presentation, including that:

·       Last year was commented that too little weight had been given to the impact on the landscape, together with the residential amenities and risk from construction traffic and fire.

·       Biodiversity net gain had been overstated.

·       The harms of this development clearly outweigh the benefits.

·       This type of use of the best and most versatile land should be avoided as much as possible and high-grade agricultural land is required to ensure future food security.

·       In December 2023, Council approved for consultation a draft Supplementary Planning Document on sustainability. This development fails on all the counts in the document.

·       This proposed development does not comply with published health and safety guidance.

·       In November 2023, the Council refused an application for a solar farm at Sperberry Hill. There can be no reason to refuse Sperberry Hill and approve the Bygrave application.

The Chair thanked Ms Stothard for her presentation and invited Mr Mark Goddard to speak against the application. Mr Goddard thanked the Chair for the opportunity and provided the Committee with a verbal presentation, including that:

·       Bygrave was a small quiet village with beautiful views, dog walkers, cyclist and horse riders. Their enjoyment would be destroyed by loss of views and the noise from the solar farm.

·       In 2017 an application for a microbrewery was rejected in the same area. The design and scale were deemed inappropriate to visual amenities. The solar  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8