Solar farm development in the United Kingdom

Abstract

Purpose – Solar energy is the most abundant of all renewable energy sources and the development pressures for solar farms have grown rapidly in the last five years within the UK. With this in mind the purpose of this paper is to offer a general review of solar farm development in the UK. Design/methodology/approach – The paper begins with a description of the characteristics of solar farms, outlines the solar farm market in the UK and discusses the planning policies and issues associated with solar farm development. Findings – The paper reveals that solar farms have been developed on both agricultural land and brownfield sites and that the development pressures are greatest in the southwest and southeast of England. While national and local authority planning policies generally promote renewable energy schemes, proposals for the development of solar farms have raised a wide range of planning issues. These include impacts on land, landscape and visual amenity; ecology and nature conservation: cultural heritage and historic environment; construction traffic and highways; security; economic benefits; and potential economic and social impacts within the community. Originality/value – This paper provides an accessible review of the development of solar farms within the UK and as such it will be of value to developers, land and property professionals and students.