Energy Minister Greg Barker has written to every local authority in England and Wales warning them to only allow planning consent for solar PV installations where they are “sensitively placed”.In a letter to each council chief executive, Mr Barker spells out DECC’s ambitions for solar, which he describes as one of the “priority renewable energy technologies” but says he is “determined to crack down” on planning approval, which does not take into account the latest guidelines.
“Inappropriately sited solar PV is something that I take extremely seriously,” the Minister explained.
And he added: “A full Solar PV Strategy will be published in spring 2014 but in the meantime we will continue to closely monitor solar PV to assess whether additional measures are needed to ensure that is deployed with the vision I have set out.”
The Energy Minister highlighted guidance published in July by the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG), which advised local planning officials of considerations, which included:
* It is important that the planning concerns of local communities are properly heard in matter that directly affect them
* The need for renewable energy does not automatically override environmental protections
* Great care should be taken to ensure heritage assets are conserved in a manner appropriate to their significance, including the impact of planning proposals on views important to their setting
* Protecting local amenity is an important consideration which should be given proper weight in planning decisions.
Ironically, DCLG has recently concluded a consultation exercise to reform and relax the planning rules for onshore oil and gas operations, which included a proposal to remove the duty to notify people under whose land developers propose to drill. – nextgen via Google
