A controversial planning application for a solar farm in the Greenbelt has set district council against district council, parish against parish and split public opinion.
Kybo Solar Farm Ltd first applied to Tandridge District Council for permission to construct a 24-hectare solar facility at Gaywood Farm that also extended into Edenbridge, which comes under Sevenoaks District Council.
Tandridge said no because of concerns about the effect on the greenbelt and the landscape character of the area.
So the firm re-submitted an application for just the part of the site that falls within Sevenoaks, approximately half the original size.
Now known as Gaywood East Solar Farm, the proposal covers 12.4 hectares of land northwest of Little Browns Railway Bridge at Edenbridge.
The access would be off Hilders Lane.
The site is agricultural land, most recently used for sheep grazing, a use which the applicants say could continue after the solar panels are installed.
But the land falls partly within a Zone 3 flood zone, that of highest risk, which has worried neighbours.
The company says that the solar panels will be confined to that part of the land with the lowest risk of flooding, but in any case, it argues that run-off from the solar panels will be no different from the usual rainfall on the land.
Because the site is within the greenbelt and not allocated in Sevenoaks’ existing Local Plan, the application represents a deviation from the regulations and planning would not usually be allowed.
However, Sevenoaks planning officers think that the need to provide sustainable energy generation is sufficient reason to make an exception.
They also say that with improved landscaping, the solar panels, which will be 3m in height, will not intrude significantly into the landscape.
Kybo said the farm would generate enough electricity to power 3,700 homes per year.
Edenbridge Town Council is supporting the plan. Neighbouring Limpsfield Parish Council is objecting.
A total of 133 submissions have been received from the public.
Of those, 60 have been in support of the application, citing the need to tackle the climate crisis, and pointing out that an agricultural use will remain. Six people said they thought there would be no harm to the landscape.
Seventy-three people objected to the plan, raising concerns about the impact of heavy vehicles on the rural roads during construction, concerns over flooding risk, the loss of agricultural land and the loss of landscape.
The application will be decided by the Sevenoaks development management committee meeting tonight (Thursday).
Details of the application can be seen here.
Look for application 23/00505.
Kybo said the solar farm would be deactivated after 40 years, when the land could be returned to agriculture.
