Earlier this year Lightsource Renewable Energy withdrew their application to construct a  54 acre, 10.7 MW solar photovoltaic park at Bowhay Farm between Dunchideock and Ide in Devon. However they have now applied for permission to construct a somewhat smaller scheme on the same site. According to the design and access statement that has just appeared on the Teignbridge District Council web site :

More on Lightsource Make Second Application for Bowhay Farm Solar Park

BBC Devon report today that:

A countryside group has raised concerns about Devon farmland being taken out of food production for solar farms.

The "countryside group" the BBC is referring to is in fact The Campaign to Protect Rural England. According to the BBC, Penny Mills from the CPRE has said that:

More on Food Production Fears Over Devon Solar Farms

According to the Teignbridge District Council planning web site Lightsource Renewable Energy have just withdrawn their application to construct a  54 acre, 10.7 MW solar PV farm between Dunchideock and Ide in Devon. The withdrawal notice reads as follows:

More on Lightsource Withdraw Planning Application for Bowhay Solar Farm

As we reported recently, Lightsource Renewable Energy have applied for planning permission to build a 10.7 MW solar PV park on a 54 acre site just south of Exeter. Now:

A group of local people who are enthusiasts for renewable energy

have set up a web site with the aim of:

More on Bowhay Solar Farm Locals Launch Information Web Site

Following their community consultation back in June, Lightsource Renewable Energy have just applied to Teignbridge District Council for planning permission for the:

Construction and operation of a 10.7MW Solar Photovoltaic Farm, including ancillary buildings and security system

The application form states they propose to do this on 54 acres of land at Bowhay Farm, Shillingford Abbot. Whilst this may be correct as far as the Royal Mail are concerned, we locals know that the land in question is actually closer to Dunchideock than Shillingford. In fact if I jump up and down at the top of my garden I can just about make out the far corner of the site. If I then walk up to the top of the hill I get an extremely good view of it. Whilst these views are very familiar to me, it seems that the planners at Lightsource are unfamiliar with them, since neither appears in their Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment document.

More on Lightsource Seek Permission for a 10.7 MW Solar PV Farm Near Dunchideock

The minutes of the meeting of the Teignbridge District Council planning committee have now been published, including the debate about a proposed 40 acre solar farm at Gold's Cross Hill near Tedburn St. Mary that I contributed to last Monday.

More on Teignbridge DC Minutes Reveal Reasons for Refusing Tedburn Solar Farm

According to the front page news in this morning's Western Morning News, and under the headline "Eden in new 'hot rocks' scheme":

Energy independence, hi-tech jobs and a long-term income from exporting power to other parts of the country could be a reality for Cornwall by the end of the decade.

It's not a reality just yet, however, since although the Eden Project obtained planning permission for a geothermal energy facility from Cornwall County Council back in 2010:

More on Will Eden's Geothermal Plans Make Cornwall Energy Independent?

I attended the Teignbridge District Council planning committee meeting at Forde House in Newton Abbot earlier today. I was there objecting to the proposed Tedburn St. Mary solar PV farm, and the members ultimately voted to refuse the application with a ratio of 3:1. Over coffee after the vote my local district councillor pointed out to me that a request for a screening opinion had been received for a 23.3 hectare solar PV park near Starcross.

More on Proposed 23.3 Hectare Solar Park at Cofford Farm, Starcross

Friday 22nd June 2012

To:

Jeremy Ebdon – Teignbridge DC Planning Department
Brendan Clarke – Lightsource Renewable Energy

Dear Sirs,

My continued requests for information from the Teignbridge District Council planning department have so far elicited no response from the officer dealing with the Bowhay Farm Solar PV project. As I am sure you must be aware, time is of the essence in these matters. I would be extremely grateful if somebody could get back to me as soon as possible to answer a few queries I have after reading all the documentation available online concerning the SO application.

More on An Open Request for Planning Advice

I've recently returned from Shillingford St. George, where I sat at the front of the packed village hall whilst Penny and Brendan from Lightsource explained the virtues of generating 12.3 MW of renewable energy on grade 2 agricultural land just north of Dunchideock.  I did enquire if it would be OK for me to record the proceedings on my trusty Sony Handycam, or even just a still camera. Lightsource informed me that they weren't "comfortable" with that idea. The lady sat next to me informed me that she thought "that's a pity".  That is indeed a pity, because it means a more "in depth" report will have to wait for another day,  always assuming that I can successfully decipher my hastily scribbled notes.

More on A Brief View of the Bowhay Farm Solar PV Public Information Evening