If solar power plants don’t look more attractive, they will lose local support

Photo: DutchNews.nlsolar

New solar farms need to look more attractive or local protests will put the brakes on the energy transition, warn researchers from the Wageningen Solar Research Programme.

“Support for solar power plants is already crumbling,” said Sven Stremke, head of the programme. Newsool.

To help locals understand the arrival of solar farms in rural areas, universities and environmental groups plan To make them look more attractive and to maintain climate targets.

Stremke said there are often discrepancies between the design of solar plants and the ones that are actually built. The land for the solar farm is also supposed to be used for other purposes, such as agriculture, but multifunctional areas can be counted on the fingers of one hand and there is no policy to back this up, Stremke said. I’m here.

He said that if farms were truly multi-functional, combining energy generation with landscape, nature and agriculture, there would be more local support.

The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate has said it is working on “requirements including nature” for solar plant licenses from 2024.

court precedent

Based on an analysis of published court rulings, Nieuwsuur found that the number of new solar farms subject to lawsuits to block construction has doubled since 2019.

Lawyer Emile Euverman said one of the main complaints about solar plant builders is that locals are not being consulted. Aside from the location, the lack of greenery to hide the solar panels from view is a frequent complaint, he told the show.

In Helmond, where meadows of green and flowers were promised schedule With no solar farms at all, locals took E-Quest’s owners to court.

“There are no flowerbeds or tall hedges as the first drawings indicated,” said local spokesman Willem Boetzes. “It’s been many years, but I hope they finally put green. It will also improve biodiversity.”

E-quest countered that the lack of greenery was due to an error by the local council that cut the sprouts twice. In addition, polluted soil is also unsuitable for planting, the company said.

A decision in that case is expected at the end of the month.