A PARLIAMENTARY candidate for Yeovil has welcomed the council’s decision to back proposals for a solar farm that will provide power to a Leonardo’s factory.

Serena Wootton, the Green Party parliamentary candidate for Yeovil, said she was pleased this application for the land at Camp Road was approved.

She said: “The generation of power has always been a contentious subject with people being divided on all forms of energy production.

“The Leonardo application was submitted by Conrad Energy, and debated with some people unhappy with the outcome.

“The benefits and negatives were all considered, and the main points of debate were centred around where the solar field was sited, land use, the impact visually and on the environment, and the clear-up at the end of the contract.

“Leonardo are a major energy user and should be applauded for addressing their use and taking steps to create at least some of their own power.

“I hope that they continue to do this and consider installing solar panels on their own buildings.

“The land at Camp Road will continue to be usable for grazing sheep as many solar farms already do, thus reducing the concerns that farmland will be lost.

“Solar applications are now quite stringent, and the visual impact is always considered when granting permission to proceed with the project.

“There have been multiple surveys that show the benefits of solar farms to the biodiversity of the immediate area, with less machinery, traffic, and chemicals, the sites can see a positive increase.

“Finally, to the decommissioning of the site at the end of its contract: Solar farms can be removed leaving the fields to return to their original use and the present recycling rates of 96 per cent of solar panels shows that the system is close to becoming circular.

“I am pleased this application was approved meaning this site will be generating power for the next forty years.”

The proposal was discussed at a meeting on Tuesday (January 30) where some objections were raised by councillors and residents.

Conrad Energy (Developments) II Ltd. applied in September 2023 to construct a solar farm south of Camp Road in West Coker, on land north of the local doctors’ surgery.

The solar farm will provide power directly to Leonardo’s factory on Lysander Road for the next four decades, further consolidating the company’s Somerset base.