Controversial plans for a solar farm the size of 55 football pitches on Romney Marsh have been given the go ahead. The new site at St Mary in the Marsh will be the smallest in the latest generation of huge solar farms planned for the Marsh – including one near Camber.
Energy firm Enviromena was granted permission to build the facility on land off St Mary’s Road, opposite Marten Farm. Covering 40 hectares, the site is currently used to grow crops, including a “very healthy” winter wheat harvest, opponents told councillors.
The decision was made at a packed meeting of Folkestone & Hythe District Council’s (FHDC) planning committee on Tuesday 20 January, where officers had recommended approval.
The public gallery was filled with members of campaign group Hands Off Our Marsh (HOOM), which was set up to oppose the growing number of solar farm proposals across the area.
Speaking against the plans, HOOM representative Amanda Farrant said: “We’re not against renewable energy, we support it in the right places. This proposed scheme is the wrong project in the wrong place.”
She also warned the development could increase the risk of flooding on the low-lying marshland.
As with many solar schemes, Enviromena says the development will be temporary, with panels removed after 40 years. During that time, the land would remain in agricultural use for sheep grazing.
Councillor Colin Woollard of Newchurch Parish Council told the meeting that residents and councillors are “unanimous in opposition” to this scheme and three other proposed solar farms on the Romney Marsh.
He argued the parish would see no direct benefit from the energy generated, adding, “However, our parish will have to live with the disruption of visual amenity for 40 years – and the disruption and damage that large amounts of construction traffic will inevitably cause to the road network.”
District and county councillor David Wimble (Reform UK) also spoke out against the plans, saying, “Romney Marsh is not an industrial site – it’s a historic, rural agricultural landscape. Forty years of panels, fencing, substations and access tracks is not temporary in planning terms.”
In planning documents submitted to FHDC, Enviromena said the solar farm would generate enough renewable electricity to power about 10,600 homes each year.
The Romney Marsh has become an increasingly attractive location for solar developers due to its flat, open landscape and lack of trees. Renewable energy schemes are a national planning priority, with councils encouraged to approve projects where possible.
Addressing concerns, Steven Bainbridge, speaking on behalf of Enviromena, told councillors, “When we refer to temporary development, we mean it’s reversible in planning terms. It’s not prime agricultural land. The soil is not lost and can remain in pastoral use having rested for 40 years.”
Environmena first lodged its application in March last year and more than 80 objections were submitted by members of the public ahead of the meeting. However, councillors narrowly voted to approve the plans by eight votes to four.
After the decision, Enviromena’s chief development officer Mark Harding said, “We’re pleased the planning committee recognised the project’s merits, and we’re proud to be bringing forward something that strengthens the local environment and delivers long-term benefits for the community.”
A spokesperson for HOOM said the approval “sets a dangerous precedent” and warned the Romney Marsh risked becoming an “industrial energy zone” at the expense of food security, flood safety and its historic character.
Elsewhere on Romney Marsh, EDF and PS Renewables have put forward proposals for six pieces of land around Lydd with the biggest to the north of Jury’s Gap at Camber. The project is considered a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) which will be decided by the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero rather than go through the local planning process.
Also being proposed: the South Kent Energy Park surrounding the village of Old Romney and the Shepway Energy Park near Newchurch.
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