Planning officers reveal why they rejected solar farm proposal near beauty spot
A solar farm proposal has been rejected – partly because of planning officers' concerns about its impact on the 'historic landscape'.
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Opdenergy UK 10 had applied for permission to build Uffington Solar Farm on a 25-hectare agricultural field to the west of Haughmond Quarry.
The applicant had said the proposal would allow the field to continue to be used for agricultural purposes.
A submission with the plan stated: “The site has been chosen by Opdenergy UK 10 Limited in conjunction with a willing landowner ensuring that an efficient, technically and economically viable solar farm can be developed without causing significant adverse environmental impacts, which makes it ideal for the generation of renewable energy and accommodate sheep grazing beneath and between the rows of solar panels, to maintain agricultural use within the site.”
But in a letter confirming Shropshire Council's decision to reject the plan, Tabitha Lythe, the authority's planning and development services manager, said there were worries about the impact of the development on the landscape.
