'Nightmare turning into a disaster' - Group slams new solar farm plans near Beverley
A local anti solar campaign group has criticised newly revealed plans for a 500MW solar farm near Beverley. The 'Clean Air Solar Farm' would be made up of two sites to the north and southwest of the East Riding town.The project, which has been announced by renewable energy specialists and joint partners, PS Renewables and Ørsted Onshore, is an evolution of the Kingfisher Solar Farm, which was announced in January 2025. The northern part of the project would be around three miles north of Beverley, and is on the same land as the original Kingfisher Solar Farm plans. The southern site would sit southwest of the A1079.The project would be able to produce enough energy to power around 160,000 British homes. At 500MW, Clean Air Solar Farm would have just over half the capacity of the recently approved Springwell Solar farm in Lincolnshire. The project, which was approved earlier this month, will have a 800MW capacity.The East Riding Against Solar Expansion campaign group (ERASE) have spoken out against a number of plans for solar farms in the region. On the Clean Air Solar Farm plans, George McManus from ERASE said: ''This is a nightmare turning into a disaster. Beverley will now be completely surrounded by solar farms."The character of the area will change forever. These are long term proposals which future generations will inherit."I urge everyone to lobby the developers and express their opposition. Alternatives for solar panels could be used without devastating the countryside. Car parks, brownfield sites, airfields and housing should be used before green fields."People need to wake up to this before it's too late. Once it's gone, it's gone."Did you know you can make Hull Live a preferred source of Hull news in Google, which will mean you get more of our breaking news, exclusives, and must-read stories straight away? Here's more information about what this means and how to do it - you can also do it straight away by clicking here.Due to its scale, it would not be East Riding Council who gets the final say on whether the plans are approved. As the project is classified as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP), it will not go through the usual planning process and will instead be decided upon by the Government's Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Ed Miliband.Speaking in defence of the plans, Randall Linfoot from the Clean Air Solar Farm team said: “Clean Air Solar Farm will be able to power approximately 160,000 UK homes, making a significant contribution toward meeting the country’s ambitious plans to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. In June, we will be hosting events to update the community on the plans."These events will be an important opportunity for the project team to gather feedback to inform the design of the project and how the project can leave a positive legacy. Plans to protect and enhance the local environment, preserve local heritage, and increase biodiversity will be an essential part of our proposals for Clean Air Solar Farm.”Drop-in events will be held at:Lockington Village Hall, Chapel St, Lockington, Driffield YO25 9SN on Monday 22nd June 2026 15:00 – 19:00Beverley Memorial Hall, 73-75 Lairgate, Beverley HU17 8HN on Tuesday 23rd June 2026 15:00 – 19:00Walkington Village Hall, 17 E End, Walkington, Beverley HU17 8RX on Wednesday 24th June 2026 15:00 – 19:00Webinar on Monday 29th June 19:00 – 19:30To find all the planning applications, traffic diversions, road layout changes, alcohol licence applications and more, visit the Public Notices Portal .
