Representation by Palmira Arenaz-Laborda
- Date submitted
- 24 March 2023
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
I would support the solar farm if it brought additional benefits for the environment as suggested below. It would also be great if cheaper electricity could be offered to the affected communities for any perceived detriment. There are examples of solar farms in operation around the world, which showcase how they can be designed and operated to deliver energy with added benefits. I have added some bullet points to expand on this. • Solar electricity generation is part of the clean renewable energy mix, which is needed to mitigate climate change caused by fossil fuels. • Landscape is ever changing due to human activities. The current landscape is the result of cumulative changes through the centuries. There was once an old landscape pre-dating intensive agricultural use with more tree cover and grassland. Could solar farm bring back more trees and grassland? • The land at the proposed solar farm locations has been subject to decades of intensive agriculture with inputs of fertilisers and pesticides. This has resulted in very poor soil health, as well as low biodiversity. Soil health would improve in solar farms sites if synthetic inputs were eliminated. • Solar land use would reduce diffuse water pollution from agriculture. It would also help reduce greenhouse gas emissions released from nitrogen fertilizer. Agricultural sources are a very significant contributor to Nitrous Oxide (NO2) emissions, a potent greenhouse gas (300 times stronger than CO2). • Solar farms can be designed to deliver net biodiversity gain by creating habitat for wildlife. This project presents an opportunity to contribute to the nature recovery network planned for Lincolnshire (Greater Lincolnshire Nature Partnership glnp.org.uk). This could include links with existing and new blue-green infrastructure beyond the sites, with the potential to create wildlife corridors at landscape scale. • The world is growing more crops, but not for feeding the people. Less than 40% of the produce from harvested area of major crops is used for direct food consumption by people. Other uses for crops include biofuel, gas production in Anaerobic Digestors - locally in Spridlington- and animal fodder. Biofuels have higher carbon footprint and are less efficient than solar PV panels. • Paying rent for energy production land use could enable other beneficial regenerative agricultural uses like organic growing of specialty crops or livestock grazing. If the land was managed to increase soil carbon content and water retention, soil health would improve as a result. If, on the other hand, the land was expropriated and had exclusive energy production use, this could be a wasted opportunity. • Solar farms should be screened from views from local villages and specially from views from the higher ground on the Lincoln Edge, a designated Area of Great Landscape Value (Central Lincs Local Plan Policy LP17). • Solar farm design presents opportunities to create new foot and cycle paths linking with existing ones. This would improve access to the countryside for the residents, which would have a positive contribution to people’s health and wellbeing.