Meeting hears views on solar farm plans close to RAF Marham – BBC

Public hearings are being held by the Planning Inspectorate into a project to build one of the largest solar farm schemes in the UK.
The Droves, which would cover an area equivalent of 1,175 football pitches, is earmarked for land between Swaffham and Castle Acre in Norfolk.
Concerns were raised at the meeting by locals about the scale of the project and the impact it would have on the distinctive environment of the Brecks.
The firm developing the plan, Island Green Power (IGP), said the panels were "temporary" and that the land could be returned to agricultural use within 60 years.
The 2,075-acre development would be built on farmland close to Swaffham and IGP said it would generate up to 500 megawatts of electricity — enough to power about 115,000 homes annually.
The government, which has the final say on the development, has been inviting public comments on the proposals.
One of those who spoke at the Planning Inspectorate meeting was Tim Hubbard, the chair of Castle Acre Parish Council, who raised concerns about the scale of the project.
"I'm certainly not anti-solar," he said.
"I have solar panels on my roof at home – I am a supporter of solar power.
"I, however, feel that this is really one of the worst locations that they could have picked in terms of the impact it will have on local communities, heritage assets and agricultural land."
Harman Sond, project development manager at IGP, said they were taking the concerns of locals seriously and remained open to modifying their plans.
"We think that the scale is appropriate because we've done several assessments looking at various things, various areas like landscape, visual heritage, ecology, we've taken the results of all of that, we've come up with this based on what we think is an appropriate scale," he said.
A second day of hearings will take place on Thursday and will include evidence from the Ministry of Defence (MOD) about the potential impact of the solar panels on pilots at RAF Marham.
The MOD confirmed it would oppose the project due to concerns about glint and glare.
Large solar farms are a major part of the government's plans to transition to green power, with the aim of tackling climate change and making the UK less reliant on foreign energy.
Because of the scale of such projects, it will decide on planning permission for them, rather than local authorities.
Do you have a story suggestion for Norfolk? Contact us below.
Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Politicians must be able to to ask questions about the plans at Earystane, a local authority says.
The solar farm would have been across an area the equivalent to about 90 football pitches.
Grantham Meres has replaced its gas boilers with an air source heat pump and 576 solar panels.
Building a community solar farm in Oxfordshire fulfils a lifelong dream for Barbara Hammond.
BBC Verify has been assessing if any of the pledges to cut energy bills made in the Holyrood election campaign can actually be delivered.
Copyright 2026 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.
 

source

This entry was posted in Renewables. Bookmark the permalink.

Leave a Reply