Cork farmers approached to turn agricultural land into solar energy farms

Farmers throughout Cork and particularly in the east of the county are being approached and offered huge sums of money by solar companies to install hundreds of acres of solar panels on their land, an independent member of Cork County Council suggested during a debate at this week’s meeting of Cork County Council.

Peter O’Donoghue, who was elected in the Fermoy Municipal District in June, was speaking as he proposed a motion calling “for the creation of clear and concise planning requirements for solar farms, energy storage facilities and wind turbine farms” by Cork County Council and further suggesting that all current applications for such developments “be put on hold until such planning requirements are in place”.

Under threat

Mr O’Donoghue suggested two of Cork’s attributes, its beauty and the ability of the land to grow food so easily and naturally compared to most other countries, were ‘under threat’.

“Our landscape faces being turned into an ugly industrial zone and our fertile land, the best land in the world to grow food, faces being lost to industrial solar and wind development unless we do something about it as soon as possible.

“Many farmers in the parishes of Midleton, Carrigtwohill, Knockraha, Glanmire, Bartlemy, Rathcormac, Castlelyons and other areas, are reporting they are being approached by solar company representatives, asking them to convert their agricultural land into solar energy production facilities,” he said.

“Already several farmers have succumbed and signed up thousands of acres to these solar companies.”

Safety

Many of the councillors present at the meeting supported elements of Mr O’Donoghue’s contribution, expressing concern about the safety aspects regarding battery storage facilities but council CEO Moira Murrell was quick to point out that it was “legally impossible” to put planning applications already submitted on hold as the councillor had suggested.

“All applications that are submitted to the council must be adjudicated on, it cannot be predetermined,” said Ms Murrell.

It’s a matter for every adjudication to be made, either grant or not grant a various application, but in consideration of the notice of motion and that context. A vote in relation to that is not something we could give effect to as an Executive.”

County Mayor Joe Carroll pointed out that what the council was doing was giving effect to national guidelines in terms of planning while Michael Hegarty, the Fine Gael councillor and chairman of the Planning Special Purpose Committee, suggested this matter would come back to them and they would ensure there were specific guidelines put in place.

Legitimate concerns

Social Democrats councillor, Liam Quaide, said he fully accepted that solar farms and other renewable energy projects come with trade-offs and that people often have legitimate concerns about these developments.

While maintaining that the “seriousness of climate change” needed to be addressed in the context of any discussion on renewables, he said: “It would be much preferable, in my view, if solar and wind farms were co-operative, part-owned by communities where they are located instead of being owned by entirely private entities.”