Reg Little talks to the people behind proposals for the largest solar farm seen in the UK

Under darkening skies and with much of Oxfordshire’s countryside still deep under flood water, it seemed an inauspicious day to start building work on a new solar farm.

But the company behind a £37m scheme at Landmead Farm near East Hanney was already looking ahead to brighter days.

The 230-acre solar farm is set to become the largest in the UK, providing enough power to supply 10,000 homes.

And by getting work under way last week, it is hoped the solar farm will be completed by April.

But it turns out that Landmead Farm could be described as the second phase of a bigger project on land owned by Oxfordshire farmer Neil Walker.

The neighbouring 140-acre farm, Goose Willow Farm, on Hanney Road, just outside Steventon, is already producing energy.

An £18m investment saw it begin operating as a solar farm shortly before Christmas.

The irony of the timing had not escaped Catherine Strickland, an associate at Thrings, the law firm involved in the lease of Landmead Farm to developers INRG Solar.

For all the sodden state of the countryside she was happy that the site had been well chosen, when she went to inspect the large frames going up.

She said: “Oxfordshire and Wiltshire are in fact prime areas for solar projects due to sunlight here — as well as good access to the National Grid to feed in the energy produced.”

With about 30 other solar farms on the drawing board for Oxfordshire, the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) has been watching the planning applications going before councils across the county with increasing concern.

But the director of the CPRE in Oxfordshire, Helen Marshall, admitted that the scale and speed of what was being proposed outside the village of East Hanney had taken her by surprise as she realised that the two schemes were on neighbouring sites.

It certainly reinforced her fears about the Oxfordshire countryside being covered by vast areas of dark glass, almost unnoticed.

Open land between Abingdon and Wantage is fast becoming a favourite area with solar farm developments.

A public consultation has taken place on a project for a solar farm on land north of Reading Road, East Hendred.

A solar farm is also proposed near Grove on a 145-acre site. Another, 71-acre solar farm is already under construction nearby in Hill Farm, Steventon.

Ms Marshall said: “We are obviously concerned about the visual impact on the site. As with other solar farms we do not think it is the right use for agricultural land.

“We don’t understand why these enormous sites are being given permission. Because other applications are still in the pipeline and units are not yet built people are not aware of the accumulative impact. Oxfordshire residents will be in for a shock when all the solar farms come on line.”

Ms Marshall believes solar panels would be better focused on brownfield sites. She called on local councils to take greater notice of central government guidelines suggesting commercial, domestic and industrial premises were more suitable locations for solar panels than green fields.

But George Paton, a partner with WebbPaton, land agents who negotiated the lease of the East Hanney site, insists: “This is the most concealed site possible. You cannot see it from anywhere. It is nondescript land with no features, in a basin. If you wanted to hide something away, this is perfect.“ At the same time he said the farmland was grade four and of poor quality.

The planning permission granted by the Vale of White Horse District Council last year will allow the farms to be used as solar farms for 26 years.

Mr Paton said renewable energy was proving an attractive option for landowners looking to increase the value of their asset and achieve a higher return per acre.

At the same time he said Landmead Farm would continue to be managed as natural pasture land, grazed by sheep to encourage diversity of flora and fauna.

Hal Dunkelman, of Grafton, near Bampton, who was involved in a campaign to stop a solar farm near his home, said that with more than 30 more solar farms being proposed in Oxfordshire, covering up to 1,000 hectares of farmland, it was time for councils to see the bigger picture.

“It would make far greater sense to have electricity sources close to where people are using it. There are thousands of acres of brownfield sites that could be used, along with the rooftops of office blocks, factories, warehouses and housing.”

He believed using the words ‘farm’ or ‘park’ was misleading.

“Let’s call them power plants. They are industrial installations. And these 25-year leases, with options to renew, mean there is, to all intents, a permanent transformation of land use.”

Mr Dunkelman believes the countryside is vulnerable with applications coming one at a time, with many councils not having drawn up a proper policy.

He is now calling for a moratorium on further large installations until councils have drawn up policies and clear guidelines.

But Adrian Duffield, head of planning at South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse district councils, said: “We understand the Government’s position on alternative means of generating energy.

“When we receive a planning application we will consult the local community in the usual manner and their views will then be considered alongside our local plan and national guidance.”

Months of heavy rainfall and flooded fields will do little to deter new applications. It is likely to be some time before the sun sets on the issue of solar farms and the conflict over how Oxfordshire’s countryside can hope to meet conflicting energy, food and environmental demands in the coming decades.