Solar "farm" effect on deer management and wildlife on adjacet land

[Mardler]

Anyone have any experience or opinions on the effect of solar farms and loss of habitat has on deer and other wildlife? Anybody know of any studies done or Case studies? Theres a proposed large "nationally significant infrastructure project" - 7000-ish acre in total solar "farm" - currently in consultantion process which one of my permissions directly bounds onto. All arable land with pretty standard for Norfolk hedge/wood/field sizes. It's really an unknown to me how this loss of such an area (I am presuming that it will be fenced) will effect the deer and wildlife - I can only summise what will possibly happen. I have "all" five deer on my perm - other than sika - although some are rumoured locally. Just wondered if anyone has experience of having one of thier permissions effected in anyway by complete loss of adjacent habitat - solar, housing, roads etc - maybe negtive or positive? TBH we really don't need the deer density increasing on my perm so at the moment I fail to see any positives.
I'm going along to one of the "Public Consultations" this week so will see what they have to say, but I'm not at all positive about it ATM
Apologies in advance if I don't respond to any replies timely, I work/live in environments where signal isn't available - but I will get back eventually! Thanks.

 

[Cyres]

Solar farms are a haven for wildlife. They fence it to keep humans out but will leave gaps for roe and alike to exit and enter at will. I have a large solar farm v close to me and one of my best perms is just being fenced as initial stage of being made into a big solar farm. Another going in adjacent to more of my perms.
In one panels high up so sheep can graze so it eliminates need to mow.
If you have read and fallow then that could be a problem.
If you want to chat DM me.
D

 

[Mardler]

Solar farms are a haven for wildlife. They fence it to keep humans out but will leave gaps for roe and alike to exit and enter at will. I have a large solar farm v close to me and one of my best perms is just being fenced as initial stage of being made into a big solar farm. Another going in adjacent to more of my perms.
In one panels high up so sheep can graze so it eliminates need to mow.
If you have read and fallow then that could be a problem.
If you want to chat DM me.
D

Thanks D for response - I do think it will put additional pressure on surrounding agricultural land - especially with the red and fallow - where the likes of me have to keep the landowners happy. Muntjac are endemic here and adapt to just about any change - better than I ever will! Loss of hedgerow is something I'm really concerned about - both habitat and navigation routes. I'll have see what the exact proposals are. Thanks again, S.

 

[Cyres]

I think you will find that hedgerow will.be be preserve wherever possible. Access roads will be handy to get around and you could set up high seats to cover trods.
Permanent IR and cameras so might be an idea to get to known the site manager. Better than any trail cameras.
D

 

[bobt]

ooh nice to know, a few local farms are going to solar panels,

 

[Heym SR20]

I can understand why land is put down to solar farms because of the financial return, but it seems absolutely nuts to me to take prime agricultural land out of food production to produce energy. 7,000 acres produces an awful lot of wheat, barley, OSR potatoes etc. this will have to be grown elsewhere, probably overseas so we hsve to import it.

Yet we have huge acreages of land and building roofs all available to fit solar panels. There is plenty of derelict industrial land too heavily polluted to be used for housing or agriculture, and be imaginative - stick solar panels all down our railway tracks and plug it straight the railway. It’s what the Swiss are doing.

 

[C h r i s]

These solar farms have been a disaster for me. No access for anyone other than the maintenance people literally once or twice a year, the fencing is such than deer certainly can't get in or out, all this BS about sheep grazing between the panels is just, well BS. The planning application was a million miles from the grim reality that we now have to live with. Industrialisation of once beautiful and unspoilt agricultural land, lost for a generation.

It's strange that so many of these so called solar farms are on grade 4 land...again utter BS and no one seems to question this, fraud on an epic scale.

 

[JTO]

Even if The Great British Public didn't begrudge paying the true price of food production, I doubt it could compete with the £1000 per acre per year that solar panels pay.

 

[HonestJohn]

The ones I’ve seen and stalked near down south have all been fenced like a high security prison, and lots of deer near the outside perimeter due to lack of maintenance - of course, you can’t shoot anywhere near for the risk of a bullet deflecting or ricocheting into a panel, so large swathes of adjoining land essentially becoming no-stalking zones that deer occupy

Lose-lose.

As for the benefit of solar farms used by good arable land… weren’t we supposed to be rewilding and planting native shrubs, hence the deer ‘disaster’ and need to cull big numbers? Maybe use some of the nationally reclaimed H2S land that is already levelled and will just sit barren after the unspeakable cock up decision making (yet again )

 

[Mardler]

These solar farms have been a disaster for me. No access for anyone other than the maintenance people literally once or twice a year, the fencing is such than deer certainly can't get in or out, all this BS about sheep grazing between the panels is just, well BS. The planning application was a million miles from the grim reality that we now have to live with. Industrialisation of once beautiful and unspoilt agricultural land, lost for a generation.

It's strange that so many of these so called solar farms are on grade 4 land...again utter BS and no one seems to question this, fraud on an epic scale.

With this being of such a size that its classed as"nationally significant infrastructure" it bypasses local planning and gets decided at higher level - utimately government and Mr Milliband. The companies involved all basically seem to be overseas based. Location seems to be whats easiest and chepest for connection to grid. Just so that Mr Tesla can plug in and get a warm and fuzzy feeling that he is saving the planet - I'm nt at all positive about it at the moment

 

[Mardler]

Even if The Great British Public didn't begrudge paying the true price of food production, I doubt it could compete with the £1000 per acre per year that solar panels pay.

Fully understad the landowners decisions, and it woud be hard to say no to that for however long the lease is. My understanding is that its partially funded by government subsidy - so they remove the traditional "farming" subsidies but then dish out to solar?

 

[Mardler]

The ones I’ve seen and stalked near down south have all been fenced like a high security prison, and lots of deer near the outside perimeter due to lack of maintenance - of course, you can’t shoot anywhere near for the risk of a bullet deflecting or ricocheting into a panel, so large swathes of adjoining land essentially becoming no-stalking zones that deer occupy

Lose-lose.

As for the benefit of solar farms used by good arable land… weren’t we supposed to be rewilding and planting native shrubs, hence the deer ‘disaster’ and need to cull big numbers? Maybe use some of the nationally reclaimed H2S land that is already levelled and will just sit barren after the unspeakable cock up decision making (yet again )

This is my concern - making the deer management in adjacent areas almost impossible and probably only do-able by professional contractors due to numbers and location.

 

[GBR66]

I can understand why land is put down to solar farms because of the financial return, but it seems absolutely nuts to me to take prime agricultural land out of food production to produce energy. 7,000 acres produces an awful lot of wheat, barley, OSR potatoes etc. this will have to be grown elsewhere, probably overseas so we hsve to import it.

Yet we have huge acreages of land and building roofs all available to fit solar panels. There is plenty of derelict industrial land too heavily polluted to be used for housing or agriculture, and be imaginative - stick solar panels all down our railway tracks and plug it straight the railway. It’s what the Swiss are doing.

Spot on - current policy is environmental vandalism, unrecyclable panels made using Chinese coal fired power and shipped thousands of miles to take over agricultural land.....

 

[old keeper]

I'm appalled at the way our agricultural land is being used up for non-agricultural purposes. Some of the best agricultural land in Devon is now covered in houses. Solar farms are being set up in several locations as well., I heard on the news this morning that the population is expected to expand by eight million by 2050 (no doubt with additions from elsewhere not accounted for).
Absolute madness

 

[Bo Diddley]

@Mardler , where abouts is the 7000acre farm going to be?
The biggest I know of is proposed at Gissing, 5000 acres!
I'm a Norfolk chap, so interested.

 

[GBR66]

These solar farms have been a disaster for me. No access for anyone other than the maintenance people literally once or twice a year, the fencing is such than deer certainly can't get in or out, all this BS about sheep grazing between the panels is just, well BS. The planning application was a million miles from the grim reality that we now have to live with. Industrialisation of once beautiful and unspoilt agricultural land, lost for a generation.

It's strange that so many of these so called solar farms are on grade 4 land...again utter BS and no one seems to question this, fraud on an epic scale.

Landowners near where we used to be were told to stop fertilising for a couple of years to get the yields and grading down.

 

[Heym SR20]

Don’t get me wrong I am not against Solar and Wind per se, but they are brilliant sources of local power. Housing, farm buildings, factories etc should have solar, with the power going directly into the buildings, and use to charge vehicles, provide base heat etc. No reason by a building can’t be pretty much self sufficient, albeit grid connected useful as a buffer.

Big energy suppliers don’t like this though. EDF, SSE etc have a fantastic monopoly scheme extracting most expensive electric bills in Europe from the British Public and transferred the benefit elsewhere.

Offshore Wind is pretty good. And the biggest benefit is the prohibition on fishing boats going anywhere near them. Sea beds and kelp forests are rapidly returning and kelp forests provide a much bigger sink for carbon than any onshore forest. When kelp dies, the vast majority will end up on the deep sea beds, locked away for the next few million years and provide fossil fuel for the ants take over the world and mankind are fossils like dinosaurs.

But I can understand how land owners struggling to make a living from producing food, a wind or solar farm provides huge stability to the farm incomes.

 

[Foxyboy43]

Old pal told me that a new windfarm on a neighbouring glenside was the best thing ever happened to him as it more than doubled the number of beasts on his side….

 

[Cyres]

We have a very established one close by and regularly walk around it. Heaving with roe and munty. They move through it with little problem. Issue is landowner won't allow deer stalking.
As for land the one at Bagstone is going in on ground that was heavily excavated for Celestine. Ground is terrible as all the clay is on the top. Quagmire in winter and like rock in summer. At best used for rough grazing. The ground has been neglected for decades. What on the surface looks good but when I speak to the local contractors all say doggy land to work.
In my case I will just have to rethink my fox control strategy.
One benefit is the local travellers long dog activities willbe severely curtailed.
D

 

[bottletopbill]

My perm as been granted solar permission so if it increases wildlife .