Ashford Borough Council reject EDF's application for a solar generating station along Church Lane, Aldington
This proposal, submitted in 2022, was refused on Monday on a number of counts
The best restaurants in Chicago
Hendrerit enim egestas hac eu aliquam mauris at viverra id mi eget faucibus sagittis, volutpat placerat viverra ut metus velit, velegestas pretium sollicitudin rhoncus ullamcorper ullamcorper venenatis sed vestibulum eu quam pellentesque aliquet tellus integer curabitur pharetra integer et ipsum nunc et facilisis etiam vulputate blandit ultrices est lectus eget urna, non sed lacus tortor etamet sed sagittis id porttitor parturient posuere.
- Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur rhoncus ullamcorper ullamcorper
- Mauris aliquet faucibus iaculis dui vitae ullamco
- Posuere enim mi pharetra neque proin vulputate blandit ultrices
- Blandit sapien in habitasse arcu in interdum diam diam interdum.
1. Burger Bar & Grill
Sollicitudin rhoncus ullamcorper ullamcorper venenatis sed vestibulum eu quam pellentesque aliquet tellus integer curabitur pharetra integer et ipsum nunc et facilisis etiam vulputate blandit ultrices est lectus vulputate eget urna, non sed lacus tortor etamet sed sagittis id porttitor parturient posuere.
2. Eagle French Cafe
Eget lorem dolor sed viverra ipsum nunc aliquet bibendum felis donec et odio pellentesque diam volutpat lorem commodo sed egestas aliquam sem fringilla ut morbi tincidunt augue interdum velit euismod eu tincidunt tortor aliquam nulla facilisi aenean sed adipiscing diam donec adipiscing ut lectus arcu bibendum at varius vel non pharetra nibh venenatis cras sed felis eget.
- Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur fringilla ut morbi tincidunt.
- Mauris aliquet faucibus iaculis dui vitae ullamco neque proin vulputate interdum.
- Posuere enim mi pharetra neque proin bibendum felis donec et odio.
- Posuere enim mi pharetra neque proin aliquam mauris at viverra id mi eget.
“Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit pellentesque pellentesque tincidunt amet vitae ac in vestibulum massa ullamcorper molestie sit pharetra.”
3. L’ardoise Bistro
Nisi quis eleifend quam adipiscing vitae aliquet bibendum enim facilisis gravida neque velit euismod in pellentesque massa placerat volutpat lacus laoreet non curabitur gravida odio aenean sed adipiscing diam donec adipiscing tristique risus amet est placerat in egestas erat imperdiet sed euismod nisi.
4. Anchor Seafood Market
Eget lorem dolor sed viverra ipsum nunc aliquet bibendum felis donec et odio pellentesque diam volutpat commodo sed egestas aliquam sem fringilla ut morbi tincidunt augue interdum velit euismod eu tincidunt tortor aliquam nulla facilisi aenean sed adipiscing diam donec adipiscing ut lectus arcu bibendum at varius vel pharetra nibh venenatis cras sed felis eget.
Ashford Borough Council (ABC) have this week Refused EDF’s East Stour Solar Farm – a Solar Generating Station application in the parish of Aldington. This proposal, submitted in 2022, was refused on Monday on a number of counts. Notwithstanding the government’s drive for Net Zero by 2050, ABC made it absolutely clear that “the need for renewable or low carbon energy does not automatically override environmental protections”.
Importantly, ABC focused on the scheme’s “setting” and in particular Aldington’s undulating landscape. They considered that locating panels and other related infrastructure on high ground created “significant adverse effects on landscape character and on visual amenity that are not, and cannot, be appropriately mitigated.”
This is a victory for common sense. Solar has its part to play in the overall renewables mix but it industrialises agricultural land and landscapes and it changes forever the countryside where people have chosen to live. Solar developers are always likely to target the most viable (and most profitable) locations close to the points of connection on the National Grid. However, it does not necessarily follow that all the land within such a proposal is suitable for this change of use – or indeed that all adverse impacts can be adequately mitigated by hedge and tree planting.
This is the third solar proposal to be refused in recent weeks locally. Each fell down on(among other factors) the issue of setting. All or parts of each of these schemes were found to be quite simply in the wrong location.
Proud and important features of Aldington are its ridgeline and Roman Road. EDF’s proposal to include Bested Hill in its scheme has been shown to be unacceptable. The Ridgeline in the parish is at least as prominent in our landscape as Bested Hill and arguably even more visible because it can be viewed from so many vantage points – not least the main approach to the village on Station Road.
We are told to expect EPL001’s DCO application - a scheme twice the size of EDF’s - later this month. Is it too late to hope that the seemingly endless delays in submission of this application are because the developer has finally realised that locating much of their scheme on high ground in and around our village is totally unacceptable to the community. Perhaps not, but at least they now know that doing so is going to be unacceptable to the local planning authority.
