Terry Jermy points the finger at farmers for selling land to make way for Swaffham solar farms
An MP has pointed the finger at local farmers giving up land for huge new solar developments.
Terry Jermy, the Labour MP for South West Norfolk, has raised concerns about agricultural land being sacrificed across the region in the name of meeting ambitious net zero targets.
Swaffham is set to be surrounded by two major new projects – High Grove, a 4,000 acre site, and the Droves solar farm, spanning 2,800 acres – which will be the two largest in Britain.
The schemes have already prompted huge opposition in the county - and Mr Jermy has attributed some of the blame to landowners being bought out by developers.
He said: “I am concerned about the potential loss of high-quality agricultural land to solar farms. Losing such land inevitably weakens our food security and the carbon footprint of imported food can often be significant.
“That said, the fundamental challenge here is that many of the solar farms are being brought forward by farmers themselves, unable to make ends meet through traditional farming and therefore reliant on diversifying land use and I can see why solar farms are so financially attractive to them.”
Mr Jermy has suggested a greater use of rooftops for solar panels, both commercial and residential, would be a desirable alternative.
He has also pledged to lobby the Government for greater compensation for those communities hosting large-scale energy projects.
The two new schemes have already prompted huge opposition in the county.
Because of their size, a decision on whether they can go ahead will ultimately rest with Ed Miliband, the Secretary of State for Energy and Net Zero, rather than local councils.
This has led Kay Mason Billig, the leader of Norfolk County Council, to accuse the Government of “riding roughshod” over local opinion as opposition mounts to the growing number of schemes.
Mr Miliband has previously spoken in favour of solar power and needs to increase renewable energy projects massively if he is to have any hope of meeting the Government’s environmental targets.