Silver for Southill Solar?

Wed 21 Dec 2016, 03:22

Thank you Alan for your post, and I'm very glad to hear that the visual impact is relatively muted as far as you are concerned, particularly as you are the most closely positioned house to the site. Our planting and landscape management plan will begin to be implemented next month, and along with the existing vegetation will help further reduce visibility of the equipment, particularly the support framework.
The solar farm is fully installed and commissioned now but control remains with the installer during the testing period which is due to complete in the second week of January. Any remaining materials still on the site compound will be removed by then, and possibly sooner. We will flag this up to the site manager and do what we can to speed up this process.

Tue 20 Dec 2016, 21:49

I hope you are right about the silver soon weathering to a dull grey, Arthur. At the moment the silver is still by far the most noticeable aspect of the main installation, especially when the sun is shining. There are also very noticeable remnants of the installation work in the form of large wooden reels which presumably had electrical cable around them, but I'm hoping these will eventually be removed as they do give the site something of the appearance of an industrial tip! (Other than this, I'm pleased to say that the visual impact of the solar farm seems relatively muted from my POV.)

Thu 27 Oct 2016, 19:51

Thanks Arthur for that download of technical knowledge!

Thu 27 Oct 2016, 16:18

I was passing the Southill Solar site today and remembered this thread so called in
to find out how the supports are finished.
They are hot dip galvanised, which is bright when it leaves the factory but soon
weathers down to a dull lead-like grey.
There is a round hot dipped galvanised gate post at the entrance to the site that
has been exposed to the elements. This is how the frames will look.

Tue 25 Oct 2016, 10:04

Ok thank you Alan, it would be good to understand how the planting plan can help you, would you like to email me offline? With regards to the glinting silver frames, once the panels are on, this should darken down and dull down the silver. We should be in this position by the end of this week, so lets reassess then. With best wishes. Als

Mon 24 Oct 2016, 17:58

Thanks, Als - I did remember that you had applied to remove some of the planning conditions, but I couldn't remember which ones. To be honest, I'm a bit surprised at how noticeable the glinting is at the moment, and being offered respite in a few years' time isn't hugely a huge bonus!
I can certainly indicate which gap in the hedge is the biggest problem from my point of view (assuming it isn't obvious) if that will allow your detailed tree-planting plans to take this into account. And I will certainly see whether I can volunteer to help with the planting, but TBH November is looking a much more difficult month for me diary-wise than it was last year and it already looks like there are very few spare days.

Mon 24 Oct 2016, 16:16

Thanks for your comments Alan and the link to the planning conditions Hans.

With regards to the requirement for black frames, we paid an additional cost
for these black frames which were bespoke for this site.

In terms of the requirement for black matt support structures, we submitted a
request to remove this condition in June this year which was approved by the
local planning authority. This was because a matt black support system was not
available and so we made a request to mitigate any impact after the
construction of the solar farm using planting and hazel hurdles.

We've already planted up hedgerow gaps which will begin to screen the site
well over the next two to three years.

We are currently finalising the detail of our planting plan for the whole site
and later this autumn we will be planting trees along the northern boundary of
the site including orchard trees. In time these will grow up to shield the
site from view.

We will be seeking volunteers for the initial planting in November and hope
that you will join us as you did last time. Your help was most welcome!

Mon 24 Oct 2016, 14:58

See the planning approval here: publicaccess.westoxon.gov.uk/online-applications/files/B1DB93AC59A8EA4074C5C0A308B0B78D/pdf/15_01523_FUL-DECISION_NOTICE-362087.pdf
You may be referring to paragraph 14 on page 3.
"No solar panel on site shall exceed 2.1 m in height and the framing and supports for the panels shall be coloured matt black"

Mon 24 Oct 2016, 10:46

Am I misremembering, or was one of the conditions for planning permission for Southill Solar that the solar panels and supports/surrounds should be matt black to minimise visual impact? The installations visible at the moment through the rather unfortunate gaps in the hedge seem to be glinting a very silvery colour in the sun.....