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06
Nov
Swinton Estate solar panels set for approval
North Yorkshire Council looks set to approve plans for solar panels to be installed at the Swinton Estate near Masham.
The proposal, which has been submitted by Swinton Estate, would see the panels installed in woodland to the north side of the estate in an area known as Mell Bush.
According to planning documents, ground mounted solar panels would be installed, along with a small transformer building, pole mounted CCTV camera and security fencing.
Councillors on North Yorkshire Council’s Skipton and Ripon area constituency planning committee have been recommended to approve the plans.
In its proposals, the estate said the move would help to supply renewable energy to the site.
It said:
This initiative aims to harness daylight and convert it into electricity, supplying renewable energy to Swinton Park Hotel, with a small amount of surplus generation being shared with the grid to support with the national decarbonisation of electricity target for 2035, which North Yorkshire Council have also been working towards since 2019 with their 'Beyond Carbon’ campaign.
Jeremy Constable, the council’s case officer, said in a report, which can be viewed here, that the proposal would also lead to wider public benefits.
He said:
On balance, the benefits of the development providing renewable energy to the Swinton Estate in an effort to reduce the estate’s environmental footprint, whilst contributing to the wider public benefits of reducing carbon emissions are considered to outweigh any harm to the nearby heritage assets and wider landscape area.
The council's Skipton and Ripon area planning committee will discuss the application at a meeting on November 10.
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