Changes to a 20MW Arbroath solar farm and energy storage site have brought an approval recommendation from Angus Council planning officials.
The Denfield project would cover more than 30 hectares of farmland around a kilometre north-west of the town.
It also lies west of the 45 Commando Royal Marines base at Condor.
The solar plan first came forward in September 2023.
But it was later withdrawn by local farmer Peter Stirling after drawing 50 objections.
A redesign of the layout has seen increased buffer zones put in around the scheme to reduce the impact on nearby homes.
However, there are still 17 objections to the application.
Council planning officials say they do not believe the impact on neighbours is unacceptable.
They are recommending conditional approval of the proposal when it goes before development standards committee councillors on Tuesday.
Solar farm layout
The development would cover 32 hectares of farmland in total, with 20ha of solar panels.
Those would have an export capacity of 12.5MW.
A 7MW battery energy storage system (BESS) would sit in a 0.19ha compound.
The solar panels are proposed in three areas measuring approximately five, six and nine hectares. The south facing panels would be angled at 23 degrees.
The applicants indicate the highest edge would be 2.25m above ground level.
And they say the lie of the land will allow a large proportion of the panels to sit below the floor level of nearby homes.
Buffer zones have been added between houses east and south of the site.
Local concerns which remain around the proposal include:
- Loss of prime agricultural land
- Adverse landscape and visual impact
- Cumulative impact with existing and proposed battery storage facilities and solar farms
- Impact on wildlife and habitats
- Property value impact
Local and national policies support Arbroath plan
Officers say: “The proposed development would result in some change to the character of the landscape.
“But the impacts would be localised and the existing pattern of field boundaries, walls and the core path would remain unchanged.”
They add: “There is a proposal for another much larger solar and BESS proposal to the west, around 3.25km from the application site.
“However, there is no planning application for that proposal at this time. Issues regarding cumulative impact can appropriately be considered if and when an application for that development is submitted.
“The proposal would give rise to impacts on the landscape and visual amenity of the area.
“It would have some limited adverse impact on the amenity of occupants of the closest dwellings; it would result in increased traffic during the construction period; and the amenity of core paths and recreational access in general would be reduced.
“However, all adverse impacts must be balanced against the desirability of facilitating a development that would provide a significant contribution towards renewable energy generation.
“Development plan policy at national and local levels provides strong support for renewable energy development.”
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