Solar farm could be green-lit for Bideford

156 acres

A 156-acre solar farm could be built on farmland on the outskirts of Bideford.

The planning committee at Torridge District Council will meet on Thursday [14 April] to decide whether to give the green light for the proposed farm at Webbery Barton and Cleave Farm near Alverdiscott, 2.5 km from Bideford.

The farm, with panels that would reach a maximum height of three metres, could generate 50 megawatts of electricity, enough to power around 15,000 homes.

The solar panels would be built across three parcels of land that neighbour agricultural fields and an existing solar farm. The land already hosts Alverdiscott’s electricity sub-station and its power lines and pylons.

Access would be through an unnamed road between Gammaton Moor in the south and Webbery Barton in the north. No public highways or public rights of way would reach the development.

If given the go-ahead, CCTV will be installed next to the solar panels, with cameras mounted on 2.5-metre high poles. A composting lavatory would be brought in.

Bideford Town Council backed the plans in February. Natural England has not objected to the proposed development.

A recent report by the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change found that the planet is on track for irreversible climate breakdown, including the collapse of the West Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets; extreme heat waves; severe droughts and extreme weather across large parts of the globe. 

Torridge declared a climate emergency in 2019 and has a goal of being carbon neutral by 2030.