Subscribe to trusted local news
In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever. By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.
- Subscription costs less than £1 a week with an annual plan.
Already a subscriber? Log in here.
12
Nov
Swinton estate to go green after solar powers approved
A new solar farm will power the Swinton estate in Masham after planning permission was granted this week.
The application, submitted on behalf of the Countess of Swinton, Felicity Cunliffe-Lister, will see ground-mounted solar panels installed on estate land.
It will help the estate become carbon neutral by 2030.
Because Ms Cunliffe-Lister is also the Liberal Democrat councillor for the Masham and Fountains division on North Yorkshire Council, the application was brought before the council's Skipton and Ripon area planning committee when it met at Ripon Town Hall on Monday.
A report from North Yorkshire Council planning officers before the meeting recommended councillors approve the plans.
The report said the majority of the site is located outside Nidderdale National Landscape.
Cllr Cunliffe-Lister
It added:
The proposed panels would be located approximately 250 metres to the north-east of the gateway and entrance of Swinton Park. The visual impacts of the proposed development are not considered to detrimentally affect the setting of Swinton Park.
The proposals do not impinge on the relationship between the high-status Swinton Castle site, the surrounding domestic development (High Swinton), and the countryside in which they lie. The historic relationship between these elements and aesthetic hierarchy is unaffected.
The benefits of the scheme in reducing the estate’s carbon emissions significantly are recognised as a positive step in helping Swinton estate becoming carbon neutral by 2030 and thereby helping the wider area. The public benefit of this proposal outweighs any possible minor degree of harm.
0