Why a market town refused £700,000 from developers - despite the promise of energy for 15,000 homes

Daily Mail​

8 hours ago

Outraged locals living in a Cumbrian market town opposing plans to build a 200-acre solar farm on a beauty spot say it will be a 'blot on the landscape'.
Green energy firm Belltown Power has put forward proposals to install panels on part of the popular dog walking and hikers' spot Dent Fell, in Egremont.
But despite promising it would provide energy for 15,000 homes for the next four decades, people say it would 'destroy its natural beauty'.
Now furious locals have told MailOnline they hope the plans fall through and say they don't want children growing up thinking 'these monstrosities are part of the countryside'.
The landowner of the proposed site and dairy farmer of 50 years Terry Dixon, 79, has hit back in the bitter row arguing that the solar farm wouldn't be visible for large parts of the fell.
The plans have divided the town of Egremont, which has a population of around 6,000, where locals fear the beloved landscape will be ruined.
A recent town meeting saw foul-mouthed Post-It notes being stuck on a suggestion board in response to a £700,000 offer for community initiatives, with one simply saying 'just f*** off', reported The Times.
James Moore, 67, a drugs and alcohol tester, said: 'I think it's a blot on the landscape and it shouldn't be allowed.
'I live in the next village across, and I had a feeling something was going on.
'I haven't been told much about it, but a lot of people around here will be in the same boat.
'People use the Dent Fell for all sorts like mountain biking and walking their dog. I worried that would get lost a bit if this was to happen.'
A stone's throw from the town centre, one banner attached to a roundabout reads: 'Save Dent Fell'.
Craig Harbertsen, 55, a roofer who lives near the proposed site, said: 'I don't want this whatsoever.
'I definitely do not want a solar farm here and my biggest fear is the threat against the landscape.
'We have loads of fells which can't be seen in people's views, why can't they be put there?
'I understand the solar farms but my main question is why are they putting it in the public eye.
Belltown Power has recently launched a website for the proposed Cobra Castle Solar Farm with a map showing the location for the site
'It's a lovely view from the Fell so I would prefer it to be a few miles away where there is still sunlight but I don't think the Government would allow it.
'Someone from the council told me residents would get half price energy if they go ahead but I don't believe it.'
In 2015, an application was submitted by Mr Dixon to install a wind turbine on the fell which was knocked back.
But ten years on, the local, who has 50 years experience of dairy farming, says it's vital the country finds more sustainable ways to produce electricity.
Mr Dixon said his family have been contacted numerous times by private firms over the years who have raided the idea of solar farm on the Cobra Castle land.
Belltown Power, who will oversee the installation work if the plans are approved, claim the land is the ideal spot for grid connection.
'The solar farm wouldn't actually be visible from large parts of the Fell,' Mr Dixon said.
'It would be at the base of the land and not on top of Egremont. It seems as if they have decided they don't want it.
'There are lots of hedges in already between the houses close to the land and there is talk of adding more.
'It's a planned 200-acre solar farm but there would only be 120 acres of panels. The rest would be made up of biodiversity land.
'People have suggested it would ruin the wildlife. If you have a look on Google, you will find a lot of towns in this country say they are accepting of solar farms.
'We need electricity and if we carry on burning fossil fuels it's a road to disaster. The biggest threat to food production is climate change.
'People say they're open to solar power but they don't want them in their backyard.'
Mr Dixon added: 'I rang everyone who lived close to let them know there would be a consultation, but it ended up in Facebook not long after.
'People have said we are pushing for this because we couldn't get a wind turbine in 2015 but that's not true.
'We still get letters through the door from firms approaching us about having a solar farm because there is a really good grid connection here.
'People say they want it somewhere else but finding another place with a good grid connection and spare land is hard.
'It's easier said than done putting it somewhere else. I'm not sure where it's at currently. The council will go away and think about it.
'This company is willing to spend money in this area and there's going to be no Government subsidiary.
'The area means a lot to people but the majority of them who don't go up there won't see what has been done.'
However, Chris Munson, a 63-year-old cleaner, said: 'I don't like these solar farms.
'They are a blot on the landscape but that's just my opinion.
'Put it this way, you'll have children growing up thinking these monstrosities are part of the countryside.
'They will think it's normal and I don't think that's right. A lot of people just wish for it to be out of their eye line.
'I don't have children but you have to look at it from their perspective. It's not fair on the next generations to grow up and think these things are normal in the countryside.
'There's got to be a better way to do it than this.'
One woman who lives close by, called Lyn, 51, who didn't want to give her surname, said: 'It's a bit of a disgrace.
'We live on an estate which looks over it and it would be going an eyesore. I worry about the physical aspect of it. I think one down south which caught fire.
'It wouldn't fit in with the scenery around here. The Dent Fell is lovely. You can see so far on a clear day.
'A solar farm isn't fit to be put here. I hope the plans fall down.'
Electrician worker Neil Bell, 51, regularly takes his dog Leo for a walk there.
Neil added: 'I'm against it happening, it would look a bit of a mess. It's a lovely place to walk up there and I think it's crazy.
'I was shocked when I heard about it and I got something through the post about it. There was a meeting which I missed because of work.
'I would have went but apparently it was a case of them saying this is what is happening and not asking for people's opinion.'
But not everyone in the town is against the idea and some locals are backing Mr Dixon.
Ian Todd, 56, said: 'My opinion is that it shouldn't be an issue. It won't spoil the landscape and we need electricity somehow.
'We should use the sun, that's what it's there for, instead of burning fossil fuels. It's got to the point where we need to use things like solar energy.
'I know there is controversy over it but it baffles me. You have to move forward with the times.'
One woman, who didn't want to be named, added: 'People who are against it are reading what they've seen online.
'But they are ill-informed. No one has looked into the fact it can bring out electricity bills down.
'The area is overseen by the forestry commission who are always felling trees.
'They aren't native trees and there's no wildlife to speak of because of that.