Back to Black
Back to Black
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Latest: Feb. 22, 2024
We've won!
You may have already heard, but I am very pleased to report that we have won our case!
The Judge, Mr Justice Fordham, said, amongst other things: "The planning permission is unlawful because the …
Read moreWe are residents living in Burnhope, Lanchester, and Maiden Law in County Durham.
We want to stop the vast Burnhope Solar Farm that will cover an area of countryside four times the size of the Durham Peninsula, which includes the Cathedral, the Castle, the Colleges and the Market Place. Installing solar panels to roofs, car-parks and factories is vital. We can cut carbon emissions and help save the environment. But fixing 110,610 solar panels in the fields around us is not green. It's back to black. Just like we had with the open-cast mining, our countryside goes back to being an industrial wasteland.
Durham Council have approved the plan. They didn't listen to the hundreds and hundreds of residents who said 'Please don't do this'. They didn't listen to the RSPB or the Durham Wildlife Trust who both said it would damage the environment.
We want to stop it.
But we need your help. Because the only way to stop it now is by asking a Judge to listen to the facts. And that costs money.
We are raising funds to get advice from a planning barrister on whether we have grounds for judicial review. We need an immediate fund of £3,000 and may well need another £25,000 to get our voices heard.
Please give and share this page to help us.
Every gift, no matter what size, is hugely appreciated. Thank you.
Why is this back to black? These are some of the effects we will see:
Right next to our village will be an industrialised area over twice the size of our community. Imagine that. Hundreds of acres of steel, black glass, cables, CCTV cameras and transformers.
All the ground nesting birds will be displaced. You can see curlew, lapwing and skylark. We have a nature pond and fields that provide the right environment for these beautiful birds to breed. Their delicate habitat will be lost. Curlew is red listed. If we don't preserve their habitats now, we might lose them completely.
There are no other safe and level footpaths for walking. None of the roads in and out of the village have pavements and walking is dangerous because the roads are narrow and the cars go fast. We don't have a park. The only safe places we have to walk are through the fields which will all be industrialised.
These footpaths were created with public money when the land was restored after the mining. People come from all around to walk here. The landscape is lovely and the open views are tremendous. It gives us space to engage in nature which helps our mental wellbeing. If the solar farm goes ahead, our walks will be alongside 6 foot high metal fences, watched by security cameras, gazing at brown grass, black glass, and steel.
Our village has done a lot for the energy needs of the nation. We had the mines. Then open-cast. We already have dozens of large wind turbines.
This project should be subject to a major rethink. It's not a green source of power. It's back to black.
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Keeping it Green
Feb. 22, 2024
We've won!
You may have already heard, but I am very pleased to report that we have won our case!
The Judge, Mr Justice Fordham, said, amongst other things: "The planning permission is unlawful because the Council failed to take into account an obviously material consideration, namely addressing whether it was approving more panels over a larger area than were required to produce the stated (and a lawful) electricity generating capacity."
The planning permission given to BP has been quashed.
Keeping it Green
Jan. 18, 2024
Our case has been heard!
Thanks to you we were able to get a hearing in Court as to why the proposed development at Burnhope by BP is far too big.
Mr Justice Fordham heard the Judicial Review claim in Leeds yesterday. Counsel Richard Harwood KC for the Claimant put our case first; this was responded to by Counsel John Barrett for Durham Council and Solicitor Advocate David Hardy for BP and Richard then replied. The Judge reserved judgment so that we will not know if we have been successful for a few more weeks.
Keeping it Green
Jan. 11, 2024
Can you come to the hearing?
Hi everyone,
Our court case is next Wednesday in Leeds, probably starting at 10:00am.
Can you come and support?
The address is Administrative Court and Planning Court | HMCTS | Leeds Combined Court Centre | The Courthouse | 1 Oxford Row | Leeds | LS1 3BG.
It would really help if a number of can come to the hearing.
Keeping it Green
Nov. 3, 2023
BP are trying to change their plans after being given planning permission
BP have filed what is called a non-material amendment to their Plan. Because planning permission has been granted this has been filed under a different reference number because you can’t change plans that have been approved . You can see the 4 documents of this non-material amendment here.
When you read their covering letter, it is asking the Durham Planning Authority to reword Condition 4 of the planning approval that was given to BP. Condition 4 in the planning permission BP says:
4. The development hereby approved shall be carried out in strict accordance with the approved plans listed in Part 3 Approved Plans:
It then lists all the approved plans.
BP want that amended to:
4. The development hereby approved shall be carried out in strict accordance with the following approved plans:
They then list some new plans.
Non-material amendments are not for changing important plans once permission has already been given. Otherwise it makes a complete farce of the planning process. Susan Ring has checked all the changes they have made and I have put the list of changed plans below in case you want to use them in your email.
BP have also requested a change to Condition 12 of the Planning Permission they have been given. Condition 12 says:
12. Prior to the commencement of development of any above-ground structure, precise details of that structure shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The submission shall include the colours and finishes. The development shall be carried out in accordance with agreed details.
This is basically to allow them to make changes to things like colour and finishes but not to do that unilaterally, but the Planning Authority have to sign off every change.
BP want this condition amended to:
12. Notwithstanding the detail in the approved plans set out in condition no.4, prior to the commencement of development…etc.
Our lawyer’s view on this is that it simply is not right. The planning committee had the plans before them and these have now changed and the conditions changed too. Her suggestion is
I would suggest that individuals including members of your group write now to Chris Shields in Planning asking what is going on, that they have noticed the uploaded documents, that the amendments look material (not non-material) due to change in plans and conditions and that there should be a full public consultation on the application. That should buy us some time whilst Counsel considers the documentation.
Please can you write to Chris Shields. [email protected].uk
The original planning application number is DM/22/01769/FPA and the non-material application planning number is DM/23/03147/NMA
Many thanks
Ian
List of amended plans:
GBR_GBR_Burnhope_LP2 – PDL_08 Site Layout Plan
P22-0399_EN_005_E P22-0399_EN_006_E P22-0399_EN_007_E (previously these were version C) – detailed landscape proposals
PNL_2P_25/6839_Rev 02 (previously no revision) – panel elevations
UK_EPD_CSS (previously 01) – customer substation
UK_EPD_WMF (previously 01) – weld mesh fence
They have removed from the approved plans:
PNL_4L_25/17 (battery block)
LP2-PDL_04 (site layout)
Keeping it Green
Oct. 23, 2023
We have a court date
Thank you again for all your support!
A Judge, Mrs Justice Lang, has granted permission for our Judicial Review on all grounds. She says that we have raised arguable grounds which merit consideration at a full hearing. This is very good news. Only 5% of applications for a Judicial Review make it this far.
We have a date for our hearing which will be held on Wednesday 17 January 2024 at 10.30 a.m. in the Administrative Court and Planning Court | HMCTS | Leeds Combined Court Centre | The Courthouse | 1 Oxford Row | Leeds | LS1 3BG.
Our legal team, Solicitor Susan Ring and our barrister Richard Harwood will present our case.
Keeping it Green
Sept. 4, 2023
Making good progress
Hi everyone,
We are making good progress. We have sent our case papers to BP and Durham council and they have 35 days to respond. A judge will then read the whole case and decide whether it justifies a hearing. Our barrister has requested that it be marked as a serious case and heard by an experienced Planning Judge in London.
There does seem to be something very odd about the way this proposal was approved by the Council.
- The council have admitted that they have never measured the power output of the solar farm. This is like giving planning permission to a build a tower block, but letting the builder decide how many floors to build after they have started building it. When does that ever happen in planning?
- Using the plans submitted by BP, we have calculated that the original application in June 2022 was for 89,860 Longi 540 panels with a total power output of 48.5MW DC
- A week before Christmas 2022 BP changed the scheme substantially and submitted amended plans. We have calculated that this was for 110,620 Trina 685 panels with a total power output of 75.8MW DC
- This is too big for the Council to give planning permission. Councils can only give planning permission for schemes up to a maximum output of 50MW. Therefore it would be illegal to build it.
- Because the scheme was changed, this possibly invalidates all the other reports that were done on the impact of the scheme on wildlife, landscape, flooding, glint and glare etc.
- Neither the Council, nor BP mentioned this very significant change and the Councillors on the Planning Committee were not informed.
- One of the key drawings of the original application, which enables us to calculate all this, has been removed from the Planning website. It just so happens that I have a copy which I downloaded when the application was first made.
Thank you again for all your support. It means a great deal to us. Please tell others about Back to Black. Solar in fields on this scale is not a green technology. It devastates the environment. It is like going back to opencast coal mining.
Keeping it Green
Aug. 2, 2023
Great first day!
Thank you for being part of the first day of our campaign. Your support means so much to us. It's felt a bit lonely here sometimes for those of us in the village.
If you can, please spread the word and invite a couple people, who you think might be interested, to consider supporting us. Every contribution makes a big difference.
Many thanks!!
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