Representation by Raymond Henry Stansfield
- Date submitted
- 8 March 2023
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
This project cannot be considered in isolation. There is a current land grab with developers placing the installation where landowners will lease rather than where it is technically best. There are at least 4 massive solar farms proposed in the area that will irrevocably change the landscape. As I take exercise or travel in the local I will be trapped in a canyon of black glass. Enjoyment of the countryside where I chose to live is multi sensory - it includes sight and sound which will be affected by the proposed projects. Like many others my mental health is maintained by enjoyment of nature. Many of my neighbours are farmers. They supplement their precarious income by diversifying into tourist accommodation. Tourists visit Lincolnshire to enjoy unspoiled rural views. The unstable global situation makes food security vital. Vast areas of farmland would be removed in this project. All of the industry that supports farming will be affected - agricultural engineers, machinery suppliers, agronomists, agrochemical suppliers etc and all the suppliers these business' rely on will be affected. The developers have presented a 'greenwashed' view of the project. The carbon capture lost by loss of farmland is ignored. The carbon generated through Chinese coal power stations in making the panels is dismissed along with the environmental cost of mining the rare earth minerals, and transporting the panels across the globe. The efficiency of solar power is over exaggerated by the developers. At a poorly attended "roadshow" I was at the developers presented the idealised maximum power generated by solar panels. They made light of the dangers of the massive batteries needed to make use of the intermittent generation. Lincolnshire is being exploited to a great extent - it is being made to supply a disproportionate amount of inefficient power to more affluent parts of the country. Me, my neighbours and the East Midlands will have our lives and environment diminished for over half a century.