One of the key elements of opposition, is formed by the council’s policy position that solar farms should not remove Suffolk’s best quality farmland from food production.
Public information, published by Defra, identifies a number of parcels of land where this project will locate solar infrastructure over Grade 2 agricultural land.
Councillor Richard Rout, Suffolk County Council’s Deputy Cabinet Member for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs), said:
“There are many technical reasons on which our objections are based. But personally, I cannot move past the significant, negative impacts this proposal will have – and has already had – on local residents and communities.
“What exacerbates this, is the frightening speed at which EcoPower wants to get their plans in front of the Planning Inspectorate. There is precious little time for people to understand the project, its potential impact, and to provide a considered response.
“The dangers of rushing a proposal such this, are many – missing significant archaeological opportunities, irreversibly damaging biodiversity and ecology, or alienating communities, to name a few.
“There is also so much detail and evidence missing from the proposals, which concerns me. EcoPower needs to provide details of comprehensive mitigation packages for communities, evidence of workforce and skills plans, impacts on the highways, and so much more. We will be highlighting this in our response.”
The council also remains firm on its preference for rooftop-before-rural solar development and expects that solar developers should rule out any links to forced labour in their supply chains.
The EcoPower Suffolk consultation is available at www.ecopowersuffolk.com and closes on 22 April 2025.
