Rare wildlife habitats could be pushed “beyond the point of no return” by large solar farm developments, conservationists have warned.
Gwent Wildlife Trust said one of the UK’s largest solar farms, Llanwern Solar Farm, which was built on two Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), had contributed to a dip in bird, bat and insect numbers.
Solar energy supporters said solar farms would cut bills, boost jobs, bolster energy security and tackle climate change.
More than 1,000 solar farms operate across the UK, according to UK government figures, while a further 800 have been granted planning permission.
The company that operates Llanwern Solar Farm has been asked to comment.
Llanwern Solar Farm was built in 2020 on the Gwent Levels, a protected patchwork of watery reens and ditches in south east Wales which dates back to Roman times.
The farm is the size of about 100 rugby pitches and could power more than 20,000 homes.
Natalie Buttriss, chief executive of Gwent Wildlife Trust, said wildlife numbers had declined around the farm.
“It’s a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) – and the clue is in the name, it’s special for both people and wildlife,” she said.
“Lapwings weren’t returning to the site to breed and they’re very rare now as a species in the levels.
“We [also] found that bat populations were crashing – the insect mass has gone down,” she added.
Last year, a Welsh government report linked the solar farm to:
- A decrease in the number of Lapwing birds.
- A significant decline in brown-banded bee and shrill carder bee populations.
- Only one bat box was found to be occupied during monitoring.
Gwent Wildlife Trust said concern was growing because several, larger solar farms had been proposed for the levels.
Ms Buttriss said she did not oppose solar farms, but said if more were built on protected land it could “open the floodgates” across the UK.
“It will be cumulative, one solar farm on its own would be devastating enough for the special landscape we’ve got here,” she said.
“But yes, if you accumulate more and more solar farms, that’s going to have a bigger impact – species will not be able to spread and disperse – and find breeding places and places to feed,” she said.
“All of that is going to come crashing down if we start to go beyond the point of no return.”
A Senedd petition opposing the proposed new developments has attracted nearly 6,000 signatures.
The Welsh government said, “pilot planning guidance for the Gwent Levels is currently being prepared”.
There are tensions over the development of solar farms elsewhere.
On Anglesey, the Alaw Môn solar farm development – which would be more than twice the size of the Llanwern site – has just been approved.
It could power every home on the island, but there is opposition to the loss of agricultural land.
Getty ImagesProf Dave Chadwick, from Bangor University, has studied how solar farms affect the land they are built on.
He said tensions over renewable energy projects reflected a broader debate about how best to use Britain’s limited land.
“We haven’t got any more land, we can’t create it, yet we need our land to provide food security, to contribute to energy security, to deliver our clean water and clean air, and our biodiversity,” he said.
“So it’s about coming up with a good, regional, national, land use optimisation strategy, which will allow us to understand how we’re going to use land to deliver these different services.
“There’s no black and white rule here, it’s not an easy thing to try and work out,” he said.
Dave ChadwickBut while conservationists are concerned, those in favour say solar energy could reduce bills, provide jobs, improve energy security and tackle climate change.
The UK government estimates the solar sector could support 35,000 jobs by 2030, and the Welsh government aims to generate 70% of its electricity from renewables by the same year.
Dan McCallum runs Awel Aman Tawe, in the Amman Valley, Carmarthenshire, which sets up solar farms.
His perspective: “The bigger the better.”
“If we could develop a massive solar farm here we would, but there’s simply not the land,” he said.
“The public debate has got to catch up and recognise it’s a global industry, and we need to move on.
“With a bigger solar farm, it’s more efficient, the costs come down – it’s much cheaper to make a larger solar farm than a smaller solar farm.”
He said farms being located on protected land needed to be “weighed up” by the planning system.
“I think climate change is having a much bigger impact on biodiversity, and I think organisations like the wildlife trust need to recognise that,” he added.
A UK government spokesperson said the biggest long-term threat to nature was the climate crisis.
“Delivering more solar goes hand-in-hand with our work to reverse the decline of nature, after years of neglect – having been found to treble bird numbers and increase bumblebee populations.
“Families in Wales have seen their energy bills go through the roof due to our exposure to fossil fuels and delivering clean power, like solar, is how we help get bills down for good and make Britain more energy secure.”
The Welsh government said: “There are currently a number of solar farm applications for the Gwent Levels that are being determined as Developments of National Significance.
“It would therefore be inappropriate to comment further on specific proposals due to the Welsh ministers’ role in the decision-making process.”
