Planning Updates

Installation of ground mounted photovoltaic farm in Marr

For the last century we have worked to protect the valuable landscapes across the Peak District and South Yorkshire countryside. This includes reviewing proposals for renewable energy schemes across the region – including the current application submitted to Doncaster City Council for a major solar farm, just north west of the city centre.

The proposal

Stantec have submitted a planning application on behalf of a company called Environmena for the installation of ground mounted photovoltaic and associated infrastructure, engineering works, access, and landscaping on agricultural land near the village of Marr. The 190-acre site is proposed to generate 40 megawatts (AC capacity).

The situation

In 2019, Doncaster Council declared a climate and biodiversity emergency due to the ongoing impact of climate change, with recent examples including wildfires, heatwaves and flooding.

CPRE Peak District and South Yorkshire is committed to tackling the climate crisis and we are supportive of solar energy initiatives. However, we will always oppose developments which harm the countryside. This includes the use of solar photovoltaics which are an important part of our energy supply in the climate emergency.

As a charity we campaign for rooftop solar solutions which help generate the clean electricity we need, while cutting carbon emissions and sparing land for food, farming and nature.

Important things to consider

We’ve been on the ground listening to concerns from residents about the impact a large solar farm will have on the local environment including the effects on

• Green Belt
• Climate change
• Valued local landscapes
• Farming, agricultural productivity and food security
• Impact on local businesses
• Biodiversity
• Historic Environment

Renewable energy sources are crucial for fostering a flourishing countryside where both people and planet can thrive, for generations to come. Yet we strongly encourage decision-makers to carefully balance the transition to renewable energy and believe that the individual and cumulative impacts on landscapes and farmland should carry substantial weight in all planning decisions.

We advise decision makers to thoroughly evaluate proposed solar farms on valuable agricultural land, so as not to compromise the UK’s food security. In doing so, we strive to protect valued local landscapes, support existing rural businesses and safeguard ‘Best and Most Versatile’ (BMV) land for food production.

Useful links

A rooftop revolution: turning possibility into reality – CPRE

Solar projects must fit in with food security – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Solar energy and the countryside – CPRE

Peak District Local Plan

What is the Local Plan?

The Local Plan contains the planning policies for the Peak District National Park. It is used to make decisions about how much and what development should happen in the Peak and on the hundreds of planning applications received each year and .

Issues and Options Report Consultation

The Issues and Options Consultation was an opportunity to check whether the current policies have performed well, and whether they are still fit for purpose given the new pressures, challenges and changes in government guidance. The consultation ran from 7 October 2024 until 29 November 2024 and we were pleased to attend a local roadshow event at Hathersage. The event gave our team an opportunity to lean more about the proposed plan, and speak to members of staff from the Peak District National Park Authority (PDNPA).

Over the last few weeks our planning officer, CEO and trustees have prepared a formal written response which has now been submitted.

Our response to the proposed plan

We welcomed the opportunity to comment on the issues and options consultation for a new Peak District National Park Local Plan with the aim of conserving and enhancing the natural beauty of the Peak District.

Many of the threats to the Peak District’s natural beauty, such as road building, transport infrastructure, and housing developments, would be all too familiar to the environmentalist Ethel Haythornwaite, one of our founding members.

In today’s world, the countryside faces an increasing number of challenges and competing pressures that threaten its sustainability—some new, some old. As we look to the future, the countryside’s role in addressing key challenges like the climate, nature and housing crises becomes increasingly crucial. It’s essential that we continue our efforts to protect and enhance countryside, whilst nurturing a future where both people and nature thrive.

Key themes

• Develop Affordable Housing: Ensure people can afford to live near their workplaces, reducing long commutes and fostering thriving local communities.
• Protect Nature: Promote biodiversity and conservation efforts to ensure nature thrives alongside human development.
• Reduce Carbon Emissions: Implement green technologies and energy-efficient practices to lower our carbon footprint.
• Manage Visitor Impact: Develop strategies to minimise the environmental impact of visitors while maintaining their positive contribution to local economies.
• Promote Public Transport and Active Travel: Reduce reliance on cars by encouraging the use of public transport, walking, and cycling.

By doing so, we hope the new Local Plan will continue to safeguard the unique characteristics of the Peak District, ensuring a healthy, vibrant environment for generations to come.

Whitestone Solar Development

We are aware of the initial consultation on the ‘Whitestone’ solar development proposals.

At CPRE Peak District and South Yorkshire, we are very supportive of the benefits of renewable energy in mitigating climate change, increasing energy security and especially so where it also delivers benefits to local communities and the rural economy. However, renewable energy proposals are looked at on a case-by-case basis and the charity seeks to support schemes which are in line with planning policy and also are appropriately scaled and protect the beauty of the natural landscape.

The consultation material for the Whitestone solar proposals is limited in detail although it is clearly a very significant size of development in open countryside, including on farmland and near to settlements. Whilst acknowledging the need for renewable energy we have concerns at the extent of the development in mind, given the potential impacts on farming, landscape character, visual amenity, biodiversity and the historic environment.

We urge the proposer to publish the assessment work on environmental effects, including visual impacts and any agricultural land classification assessments which have presumably already been carried out to date, so that interested parties can feedback on this and also better understand justification for the scale and location of development. It would be helpful if the online portal were kept open and comments allowed right up until the more formal stages of consultation.

We also urge the proposer to show on its mapping online other permitted and proposed major solar farm developments which would likely be inter-visible with the development, to aid the public in understanding the potential cumulative impact of such schemes.

The charity reserves further comments until more is published about the assessment of the proposals potential effects and the justification for its scale and location.

Should the scheme be accepted as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project and formal consultation commences it is likely that we will submit a representation.