Points That Are Notrelevant to Planning Law

****Points that are not relevant to planning law**** 1. Biomass and other alternative renewable energies. 2. The people involved. 3. The money involved. 4. Any subsidies the developers would receive. 5. The efficiency of solar power. 6. Any personal issues. Instead, the subject(s) of your letter should ideally come under one of these headings in order to be “valid” 1.Damage to Landscape Character and Visual Impact. 2.Damage to the Local Economy. 3.Impact on Nature Conservation. 4.Cultural Heritage. 5.Living conditions nearby, including Noise and other pollution. 6.The Cumulative impact with other similar developments.

Points you can use The proposed land at Fairwater Farm is open countryside. There really should not be any other discussion about the proposal after this as you should not put structures on this land. The solar panels should be considered to be an inappropriate development that is not in keeping with the local surroundings. This is predominately Best And Most Versatile Land (BMV) as shown by the applicants own survey. As such this land should be reserved for agriculture. Distraction to road users: The area of panels will be so large, drivers on the M4 could become distracted and the chance of a road traffic accident massively increased. Reflection off the panels is bound to cause accidents.

The proposal is visually unacceptable from adjacent roadways and higher ground particularly. There will be 110 acres of black panelling, metal fences, cameras and substations - a scar on our beautiful countryside. This will impact upon nearby areas of outstanding natural beauty.

Visual Impact: The proposal is so large that it would dominate the whole area and would be seen for miles. The panels are VERY large and will require a high metal fence round the edge of the field. Do you want to see this at the bottom of your garden? When considering a planning application you must consider the openness of the space. This proposal is on such a massive scale. Temporary: The proposals state that they are only going to be temporary, but in this case temporary is 25 years! Wildlife: Must consider the negative effect that this will have on our wildlife. The fields and hedges are teeming with wildlife. If the plans were to go ahead the countryside would be totally destroyed. Reflection and glare from the panels. Will residents be safe and able to use their gardens once the panels are in place? Lack of consultation: Please mention the way that the proposal has been put in. There has been no consultation with local residents or the council. There has been no community involvement which the government recommends there always should be. This is being forced on us by a large company. We are meant to be a community that works together. Health Risks: Many solar panels contain chemicals which could cause damage to the local environment and possibly public health. Arsenic, cadmium telluride, hexafluoroethane, lead, and polyvinyl fluoride could cause untold devastation should they leach into the water supply. Silicon tetrachloride renders crops infertile, causes skin burns and increases the likelihood of lung disease, and transforms into acids and poisonous hydrogen chloride gas when exposed to air. What will happen if these panels break? Cadmium may be carcinogenic. Exposure affects the lungs and kidneys and can be fatal. It's gene toxic and a mutagen, so it has the ability to affect DNA, meaning it could affect reproduction and future generations' DNA. Cadmium is technically banned by the European Union's Restriction on Hazardous Substances directive, although the policy currently allows an exemption for its use in solar modules. Privacy: The solar panels will be so close to the properties and there can be no doubt that our privacy will be affected. The panels will need maintaining that will mean security personnel and workmen regularly on site looking into your gardens and houses. Noise & Heat: The panels will cause a level of noise and when they are on such a large this would ruin resident’s opportunity to enjoy the peaceful countryside. Increased Fire Risk: How will the emergency services be able to access the site if there is a fire? Heavy rainfall would cause soil erosion and heighten the risk of flooding in the area. Increase in traffic: Safety risk to our children and elderly members of the community on what are already busy roads Recycling: They are very hard to dispose of. Will they be left to cause irreversible damage to our community and countryside? Solar Farms should be built on brownfield sites in preference to areas of outstanding natural beauty. The site being considered for the solar panels are in an area that I pass by regularly and have friends whose properties will be affected (via visual impact) directly by the development. The scale of the developments will have a massive impact both on the visual and the ecological aspects of the areas in question, I would imagine that people with properties overlooking the development sites will find such a dramatic change to their outlook quite depressing, possibly enough to make them wish to move from the area. The access to this site is via routes that are not well suited to heavy plant type traffic. I have no objections to solar farms on the whole but strongly object to the siting of them in the proposed area and feel that there are many more suitable places available where the impact would be felt a lot less by the ecology and the general public. I cannot believe that you want to destroy such a beautiful peaceful place enjoyed so many local residents and visitors to this area with such a proposal and wish to register my opposition to this proposal. It will destroy the amenity value of this area which has come to be a haven for walkers, cyclists, mountain bikers, runners and others just interested in the beautiful scenery from both inside and outside the area It will impact upon the many heritage assets within the area. The resourcing of green power should not be on green field sites. The whole point of green energy is to preserve our valuable countryside and the ecological balance. Ensuing soil erosion, unsightly fencing and cameras and threat to wildlife are good reasons for rejecting this application. This lovely area provides so much pleasure to so many people. My family and neighbours and friends love the views and sense of freedom. This proposal is completely out of character with the area. I have had several friends from other parts of the UK visit and comment how lucky we are to have this scenery right on our doorstep. Please will somebody see sense and protect this incredible asset from ill thought out and inappropriate development. These panels belong on the roofs of local schools and other large roof space such as warehousing, not in a field in an unspoilt location. Why is it preferable to use greenfield sites rather than brownfield sites? I would be interested to read a convincing argument...

Planning permission for the construction and installation of the Solar Photovoltaic Farm should be rejected without hesitation by Newport Council.

I have lived in the area for XX years and have enjoyed the unspoilt beauty of the area. It is a habitat for numerous species of plants, animals and birds which would be destroyed by the above installation.

It is also an attraction which encourages tourism to the area, as can be witnessed by the numerous walkers, the sight of huge solar panels will certainly have a detrimental effect on this which we can ill afford.

The traffic for installation and maintenance will be hazardous, to say the least as the narrow country lanes are not equipped to cope with heavy lorries etc.

Surely it is the Council's duty to protect our green fields for future generations to enjoy.

This is a beautiful area and the development will ruin the area. The solar farm will not benefit the community and provide no practical return for the disruption and destruction it will cause.

The effect on the local wildlife (animals and horticultural) is devastating.

No development should take place on this land. It should be designated an area of outstanding natural beauty.

I fundamentally oppose this planning application due to the visual impact it will have on the landscape and the volume of traffic it generate in construction and maintenance phases.

Fields are for growing crops and or grazing animals not for growing solar panels. There is no argument other than an easy option to make a quick profit for blighting the countryside in such a disgraceful way. There are plenty of buildings that solar panels can be fitted to.

Why do we despoil the more natural areas of the country with solar farms, (and wind turbines), when there are any amount of brownfield sites that could be used instead?

I was shocked and saddened when I first heard of the plans this solar farm, this is an outstanding area of beauty and one I have known all my life, the view would be totally spoiled should this go ahead, it would be a disaster and upset so many people.

I strongly object to this development. How can it even be considered as it would be a travesty to an area of such natural beauty. It would also open the flood gates to more developments in the area

The sheer size and scale of the proposed site will ruin the outstanding beauty of the whole of the area. The area has walkers from around the country and to blight it in this way is shocking it’s about time we stood up to the constant attacks on our beautiful countryside.

The development is totally out of character with the area and whilst I agree with solar energy it should be on brown field sites. There is no point trying to protect one part of the environment by destroying another part

Imagine my reaction when the solar panels I ordered have been hung on a north facing wall, under the eaves, obscuring a window and destroying the swallows nest. I protest. The fitter points out the super efficiency of the panels, the need to curb greenhouse gases and hires an expert to tell me that the ivy he intends to plant will obscure them eventually. I protest. He accuses me of being selfish and says that the view from my window was not up to much in his opinion and I will get used to the loss of view in 15 years time anyway. More importantly, he says that I should be proud of my contribution to humanity. I point out the obvious fact that he has put them in the wrong place. He thrusts a wad of impressive reports into my hand and suggests I could wear a blindfold. I ask why he is so keen to stick to such an absurd position. He admits that he will be paid much more money if he can dump them here. What should I do? Perhaps I should seek advice from the council. Surely they cannot be so easily fooled.

I grew up in the local area. I object to the proposed solar farm very deeply and am horrified that the proposal is being put forward by the applicants. The area is valued for its beauty and simple green-ness. The proposed photovoltaic arrays are huge in scale; their height will ensure their visibility; the screening will ultimately block out any views into what is currently green farmland; the site will always be visible. The nature of the area will be transformed into - essentially - industrial, right in the middle of valued countryside.

It’s an unthinkable act of utter stupidity for such plans to even be considered on such a part of local natural beauty.

Opening the floodgates springs to mind. This new application appears to be on land a previous application attempted to put a golf course on. Is Newport Council going to allow our beautiful countryside to become a solar panel dumping ground? This is exactly why this planning application and any new proposals must be refused.

This area should be free from this sort of industrial development, there is no special case for this particular land. There is already an acknowledged shortage of quality agricultural land in Wales. It is particularly close to areas enjoyed by both locals and an increasing number of visiting walkers and cyclists.

If this development were to go ahead, it will potentially serve as a 'green light' to other similar developments in this area, which will further degrade the environment.

These proposals provide no social or economic benefits to the local community. It will create significant traffic problems during construction, have no effective screening for many years and will have a negative effect on wildlife.