Councillors sound alarm on solar farm that would leave 'enormous scar' on countryside

The Springwell solar farm would cover around 4,200 hectares – roughly 2,800 football pitches – between Lincoln and Sleaford.

North Kesteven councillors slammed the proposals over the harm it could potentially do to the countryside at a meeting on Tuesday (April 1).

The developers EDF Renewables UK and Luminous Energy say the solar farm could power 180,000 homes and help the transition to renewable energy.

The final decision will be made by the government rather than the local council due to the project’s scale.

The council will send a list of objections to the Planning Inspectorate, including the loss of farmland, the effect on the landscape and concerns about the safety of the lithium-ion batteries.

Councillor David Suiter (Ind) said: “If you look at a map, it will leave an enormous scar on North Kesteven – the scale is quite alarming.

“There is a climate emergency, but putting solar farms on agricultural land is not the only solution.”

Councillor Marianne Overton (Ind), who represents part of the affected area, said: “There are so many better options to fulfil net-zero requirements – this is just ridiculous.”

She added that 42 per cent of it is considered good farmland, saying: “It’s a very big site – that’s an awful lot of food we’re not growing and will need to import.”

Councillor Ian Carrington (Con) criticised the planning process, saying: “If you want to build a chicken farm, you need planning permission.

“But if you want to bring tons of highly toxic materials formed into batteries which may or may not be fire-safe, you can plonk them down in the middle of the countryside.”

Councillor Linda Edward-Shea (Lab) said she wanted a map of all the current solar farm proposals for Lincolnshire.

“It would be useful to give the Secretary of State for Energy [who will be deciding the application] a better understanding of how much Lincolnshire residents are being asked to give up, and aren’t getting anything in return.”

Public meetings will likely be held later this year as the government gathers information on it, and a decision could be made early next year.