'Nationally significant' solar farm to be reviewed

'Nationally significant' solar farm to be reviewed

Hugh Casswell - East Midlands environment correspondent

Mon, December 8, 2025 at 12:07 PM UTC

3 min read

A stock image of solar panels — The project is made up of about 1.5 million panels [PA Media]

Proposals for a major solar farm in north Nottinghamshire are now being formally examined by planning inspectors, it has been announced.

The Great North Road Solar and Biodiversity Park, planned for land near Newark, has the potential to power up to 400,000 homes - the equivalent of every home in the county - developers said.

The project would form a ring of "solar islands" roughly 6.2 miles (10km) from north to south around villages such as Caunton and Ossington, with the eastern edge alongside the A1.

It is classed as nationally significant infrastructure, meaning the applicant is required to apply for consent from the government's Planning Inspectorate rather than the local council.

The application has now entered the "examination" stage, during which a panel of planning inspectors consider the proposals and ask questions.

People living nearby have raised concerns over the impact the scheme could have on the area, and the results of a consultation published last year showed 54% of respondents opposed it.

Developers Elements Green said in a more recent consultation of almost 6,000 people, only 3% responded with objections.

Executive chairman, Mark Turner, said the company had been "very actively engaged" with the community and reduced the amount of land required for the solar farm by about 30%.

"We have planned out an area of biodiversity enhancement that's the size of 750 football pitches," he said.

"That includes areas of woodland over 40 football pitches in size and planting enough hedgerow to stretch from Newark to Sheffield."

Egmanton resident Amanda Bird said she was worried about an increase in HGV traffic along the small country lane next to her home.

"It's a house built between 1800 and 1820 with no foundations and on clay, which means we're going to feel every vibration and end up with structural damage, more than likely," she said.

She added the plans would "devastate" the area and fears her home will become "un-mortgageable".

"I don't sleep," she said. "I'm constantly awake at night tossing and turning, going through things that I've read. Googling, is there something that I've missed? Is there something that could stop this?"

Mr Turner said the company was taking action to limit the amount of construction traffic, including building a "temporary road" within part of the site so that vehicles did not have to use public roads.

Richard Allarton, a retired engineer living in nearby Moorhouse, said he was concerned about a potential increase in the risk of flooding from the Moorhouse Beck stream which runs close to his home.

"The Beck takes the water out to the Trent, but the solar panels that are planned are actually downstream of the village between the Beck and the Trent," he said.

"Any run-off that comes from the solar panels, and solar panels will exacerbate the rate of run-off, could cause the Beck to be be overwhelmed downstream and then that will back up into the village and flood it," he said.

Elements Green Executive Chairman Mark Turner — Mark Turner said there were "many misconceptions" about solar farms [BBC]

Mr Turner, however, insisted the project will not increase the risk of flooding.

"Solar farms have grass underneath the panels and grass acts as a sponge," he said.

"That will slow the movement of water out of the field and into the drains."

The examination stage can take up to six months, after which a recommendation will be submitted within three months.

The final decision will be made by the Secretary of State for Energy and Net Zero, Ed Miliband, with the outcome expected in late 2026.

If approved, construction could start in 2027.

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'Nationally significant' solar farm to be reviewed

'Nationally significant' solar farm to be reviewed

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