Keep the Beane Valley Green

A solar Power Station has been proposed and a planning application has been submitted by the Renewable Energy Systems Ltd (RES) for the upper Beane Valley between Cromer, Cottered, Cumberlow Green and Luffenhall in Hertfordshire.

A further application by Lightrock Power Limited is scheduled to be submitted for planning approval in spring 2025, this will be on the adjoining Munches Farm - next door to the Beane Valley application.

These developments covering 1,000 acres of Hertfordshire countryside will significantly impact the local area with many detrimental effects to the community - rural landscape, wildlife, heritage assets and residents.

Support the Beane Valley Solar Plant and Battery Storage opposition group.

Keep up to date with all the news relating to the Beane Valley Solar Farms planning applications and events.

About

We are a community of concerned residents, local businesses, social clubs and groups from the Beane Valley and surrounding villages Luffenhall, Cumberlow Green, Ardley, Cromer, Clothall, Cottered, Weston, Rushden, Walkern, Mill End, Shaw Green and Roe Green in Hertfordshire.

The Beane Valley is a picturesque and rural area characterised by its natural beauty and agricultural landscape. The valley is named after the River Beane, which flows through the area and is a bowl-like landform with steeply sloping chalk valley sides incised by a network of watercourses and is described as an expansive open area. The area is predominantly arable land with an irregular pattern of medium to large-sized fields.

The Beane Valley & Munches Farm Solar Farm planning proposals present a complex challenge. While the need for renewable energy is undeniable, it is equally important to ensure that such projects do not come at the expense of local landscapes, agricultural land, and biodiversity. Climate benefits must not be played as a trump card, traditional planning policies must be applied with equal weight.

Solar power is one the cheapest forms of renewable generation but despite the growing share of renewable generation our household electricity bills continue to rise - the energy price cap will increase by 6.4% in April 2025.

The proposed solar farm developments threaten the openness of our countryside, the delicate balance of nature that thrives in the Beane Valley, it is a sanctuary that offers breathtaking natural beauty and tranquility. Our community urges the planning authorities to consider the long-term impact on our community and explore alternative sites that would be less disruptive with better suited topography for solar farm development.

The East Herts Council Landscape Office has objected to the RES Beane Valley Solar Farm planning application. They cite significant adverse landscape and visual effects, setting out that the proposed scheme fails to provide effective mitigation or enhancement. Concerns were also set out in the officer's planning application objection about the 40-year “temporary” duration impacting the community’s experience "overall, the proposed development is considered to have a significant adverse landscape effect due to the magnitude of change....the substation compound appears to be located in one of the most elevated and visible parts of the site....there should be deeper consideration for the value of the landscape".

Most significantly the East Herts Council Landscape Office's objection showed great empathy for our community stating "it is clear that the local community places great weight on the role of the local landscape in providing green open space between settlements. That, and the presence of other indicators of value such as good landscape condition, good accessibility for recreation, the presence of a community bench to take advantage of views, the presence of the historic Cromer Windmill and its association with the arable landscape, the public footpaths as an extension of the Roman Road that runs from Hare Street"

Communities deserve a say in how and where we transition to renewable energy sources, we should be able to choose solutions that respect our environmental concerns while meeting renewable energy goals.

It is not just a place it's a community

If you are concerned about the impact of the Beane Valley Solar Farm & Munches Farm Solar Plant click here to see how you can support the campaign.

To register your objection to the Beane Valley Solar Farm planning application click here.

You will find details of both the proposed solar farms here:

Beane Valley Solar Plant, Renewable Energy Systems Limited - RES, and
Munches Farm Solar Plant (Westfield Energy Conservation Park), Lightrock Power Limited.

Join us to keep up to date with all the latest news regarding the Beane Valley Solar Plant planning applications.

How You Can Help

Munches Farm Solar Plant (Westfield Energy Conservation Park) coming soon Lightrock's community consultation to include:

Webinar - 6pm-7pm, Tuesday 25th March 2025, sign up at: www.westfieldenergyconservationpark.com
Public Exhibition - 3pm-7pm, Tuesday 18th March 2025, Rushden Village Hall, Church End, Rushden, SG9 0SQ
Online Survey - details to be confirmed.

Please attend these events to ensure your voice is heard.

Let us ensure that our community voice is heard and our concerns are taken into account before any irreversible damage is done, please sign the community petition to protect the Beane Valley.

Our community is raising funds to support the campaign against the Beane Valley Solar Farm planning applications. Your contributions will go towards essential costs such as community outreach efforts, environmental impact assessments and legal fees. Every donation, no matter how small, helps protect the Beane Valley.

Join Us on JustGiving

We’ve partnered with JustGiving to make it easy for you to contribute. Simply visit our JustGiving page and make a donation. You can also share the campaign with your friends, family, and social networks to help spread the word.

The Green Future

The Beane Valley Solar Plant Opposition Group is not against solar energy, quite the opposite. We accept it has a part to play in tackling the climate crisis, but this needs to be achieved properly and fairly. We do not want to see vast acres of our best farmland taken out of food production for energy production.

We do not want to stand in the way of the delivery of positive renewable energy schemes but the lack of enforceable planning rules for solar applications mean that we are seeing a complete free for all and Local Authorities all over the country are making knee jerk decisions which can be devastating for our communities.

We must prohibit 'mega solar facilities' on UK farmland.

Government policy must align net zero aims with food security and regional integrity.

There are huge areas where solar farms could be built without negatively impacting landscapes or communities, but solar farm promoters are not interested as the necessary network infrastructure is not in place, making sites too expensive to attract investors.

The Battle

Our group is battling to stop the Beane Solar & Battery Storage Plant planning applications on our best farmland and Hertfordshire's most picturesque landscapes.

These are significant planning applications for 1,000 acres of solar and battery storage power plants across productive greenbelt fields surrounding Cromer, Cottered, Cumberlow Green and Luffenhall in Hertfordshire, with a 40-year lifespan.

We must protect:

the openness of the countryside
the amenity of neighbouring occupiers
the character of our countryside environment
the biodiversity value of our countryside
our local heritage assets.

Land is being taken out of cultivation at a rate over almost 100,000 acres per annum we cannot afford to lose further parcels of arable land.

We want rational and proactive government policy to facilitate renewable energy schemes that do not harm our landscape.

In Principle

We all support solar in principle, but we believe that solar panels should be on brownfield sites, domestic and commercial rooftops and our good farmland should be left for food production.

If ground mounted solar is required, it must only be on poor land or brownfield sites.

The scale of the sites being proposed are of such magnitude they will simply dwarf the Beane Valley and the Hertfordshire neighbouring villages.

Solar power at any cost cannot be allowed to become acceptable.

Farmland acts as a carbon sink and is an important part of UK's national renewables energy supply.

Agriculture underpins rural communities, local infrastructure and tourism.

We need our best land to be productive. 60% of our food is imported, let's not wait to the next global crisis to take action.

Local communities have the right to resist solar farms in inappropriate places.

Planners consider the impact of pending development plans.

East Herts Landscape Officer, 25th February 2025 "There should be deeper consideration for the value of the landscape"

Deer Grazing on the Beane Valley Solar Farm Site

Ojection Reasons

“Deciding to Act May Take a While; Much Longer Than the Action Itself.”

- Danielle Wengraf -

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Working Together to Protect Rural Landscapes, Wildlife & Residents