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Representation by Keith Wildgoose

Date submitted
22 February 2024
Submitted by
Members of the public/businesses
  1. I am concerned about the enormous scale of this proposed development which will effectively cause wholesale industrialisation of the present rural environment of Howden and the surrounding villages. The resultant loss of amenity for local people can hardly be overstated. 2. I am concerned about the proximity of 3.2 meter high photovoltaic panels to residential properties. I believe this will have a severe negative impact on the quality of life for many people living in the small villages which will effectively be surrounded by acres of fenced industrial facilities. 3. I am concerned about the risks of driving piles to support the solar panels. Not only will the construction noise be extremely disruptive, there is a risk of damage to drainage systems and potential flooding. 4. I am concerned that the consultation process and the applicant's responses to concerns raised by local residents has been profoundly unsatisfactory. 5. I am concerned that despite the applicant's statements, the development will impact negatively on the region's biodiversity. 6. I am concerned that the creation of enormous fenced tracts of land will displace much of the local wild deer, fox and badger population. These animals will end up roaming roadside verges leading to an increase in road traffic accidents. 7. I am concerned about noise pollution from the motorised tracking solar panels and associated inverters and battery energy storage systems. 8. I am concerned about light pollution during the construction phase and from security lighting during the operational phase. 9. I am concerned that the development will have a large negative effect on the job prospects of agricultural workers in this area. 10. I am concerned that the development will impact negatively on tourism in this area. 11. I am concerned that the development will lead to increased criminal activity in this area. 12. I am concerned that the development will lead to a significant loss of productive agricultural land, at a time when food security in the UK is threatened by external factors such as the war in Ukraine and attacks on global shipping in the Red Sea. 13. I am concerned the the development will have a severe negative impact on local traffic, given that access to many of the villages in this area is via narrow single track roads with soft verges and limited passing places. 14. I am concerned that the development will occupy farmland which currently receives much of the digestate from the anaerobic facility at Spaldington. Exporting this product from the local area will lead to further increase in heavy road traffic.