Representation by Greatford Parish Council (Greatford Parish Council)
- Date submitted
- 13 February 2023
- Submitted by
- Parish councils
Greatford Parish Council object to the development of Mallard Pass Solar Farm for the following reasons: We are very concerned about the potential that this development could have upon the speed and severity of flooding immediately downstream of the site, specifically in the village of Greatford. In periods of heavy rain the water running off of the large areas of solar panels and other hard surfaces of the proposed solar farm will be concentrated onto a much smaller area of the soil surface than is currently the case. The clay soils of the site have inherently poor water infiltration rates, and this, combined with likely compaction from the construction process will lead to over land flows of water making its way into drains, ditches and ultimately the West Glen River much more quickly than is currently the case which will cause quicker and more severe flood events than we currently experience. Greatford is already prone to flooding even with the Greatford Cut flood relief channel, the Environmental Impact Assessment has not considered downstream flooding from the proposed site and we wish to formally raise this issue with the Planning Inspectorate. We also wish to further object to the proposal for the following reasons:- The loss of a large area of productive grade 3a Best and Most Versatile (BMV) arable farmland. The scale of this industrial infrastructure proposal which is completely out of character in the rolling rural landscape adjacent to our village. The loss of habitat for large mammals such as deer & hare and other wildlife which require open, unenclosed areas to survive. The loss of amenity for people as previously pleasant footpaths with open views will be enclosed by fences and the views destroyed. There will be significant visual impact for those overlooking the site as it will be visible from considerable distances and cannot be screened from long distance viewpoints. We are concerned about the increase in traffic through the area and specifically Greatford village. The village already has problems with HGV and other traffic using its rural B roads as a ‘rat run’ to avoid choke points on the surrounding main A roads. Quarries and other businesses in the area have routing agreements which are not adhered to, and we fear that this would be the case with Mallard Pass traffic also. Members of the Council and Parishioners have also raised concerns about the developers sourcing strategy for the materials required for this infrastructure project, in particular the sourcing of materials from companies that have been associated with Uighur labour camps in Xinjiang, China. The indeterminate timeframe for the proposal. This proposal is a huge imposition upon the locality and its residents, Mallard Pass have offered nothing significant in terms of community benefit to compensate for the loss or transformation of footpaths and open views, for the huge amount of upheaval the community will endure during the construction of the site, or to alleviate flooding downstream of the site.