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General Election 2024: What are candidates’ views on solar farms?
CPRE Berkshire is calling on all General Election candidates in Berkshire constituencies to support CPRE’s campaign for rooftop renewables and to oppose solar farms.
In a statement sent to all candidates, of all parties, in all Berkshire constituencies, the countryside charity says:
“CPRE Berkshire supports de-carbonising energy production through increasing the supply of renewable energy but believes this can be done without wrecking Berkshire’s precious countryside.
With good planning and sensible decision making it is possible to deliver a mix of renewable energy solutions of the right scale and in the right locations.
We are calling on all General Election candidates in Berkshire constituencies to support CPRE’s campaign for rooftop solar panels, and to oppose so-called ‘solar farms’ that industrialise the countryside.
Support our campaign for rooftop renewables.
Our research shows that with further investment, installing solar panels on existing rooftops and other developed land such as car parks could provide 117GW of energy by 2050 – well in excess of the Climate Change Committee’s 85GW target.
So, there really is no need to sacrifice the countryside and valuable agricultural land to accommodate ground-mounted solar farms when Britain already has a total of 250,000 hectares of south-facing commercial roof space most of which currently is not housing solar panels.
A survey of nearly 3,000 CPRE supporters shows widespread support for rooftop solar – both as a government priority and on new homes. In total, 95% of respondents felt that the government should take a ‘rooftop-first’ approach when rolling out solar renewables across the country, while 97% agreed that rooftop solar should be a standard requirement on all new housing.
Ensure that proposed onshore wind developments do not have negative impacts on the landscape.
We support wind power but we oppose onshore wind developments that scar our countryside.
Through the use of innovative technology, wind power can provide a valuable contribution to the nation’s energy needs, without threatening the kind of visual intrusion that has historically caused so much division and distress to residents in many parts of rural England.
An increasing number of small-scale wind harvesting machines are available to fit to houses, offices, factories etc. and when combined with rooftop solar panels they greatly increase the reliability of micro renewable energy generation – i.e. solar by day and wind potentially for 24 hours a day.
The right place for large-scale turbines and wind energy production is at sea, not scarring the Berkshire landscape.
CPRE Berkshire supports proposals for smaller turbines (e.g. up to 40m) owned by the community which could produce energy for a community facility (e.g. a village hall). These smaller turbines are of a scale that fits into the landscape and ideally would not need to be connected to the national grid, thus overcoming a current major problem confronting renewable schemes – i.e. difficulty in obtaining a grid connection.
Campaign for all new buildings to be designed to be carbon-neutral and for substantially greater funding to be made available for schemes to increase the energy efficiency of existing buildings.
Reaching net zero is about making better use of the opportunities provided by new buildings, including new homes.”
CPRE Berkshire is asking candidates to make a public statement of support of CPRE’s campaign for rooftop solar, as well as pledging to oppose solar farms and windfarms in the Berkshire countryside.
For more information on CPRE’s campaign for rooftop renewables, go to: Our rooftop solar campaign – CPRE
