One Earth Solar Farm

One Earth Solar Farm

I am writing regarding One Earth Solar Farm Limited’s (the ‘Applicant’) intention to submit a development consent order (‘DCO’) application to the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (the ‘Secretary of State’) under section 37 of the Planning Act 2008 (the ‘Act’) for the construction, operation and decommissioning of One Earth Solar Farm
(the ‘Project’). The expected submission date will be Q1 2025.

I am writing to you because you have been identified as an organisation or community group working in the area around the Project. The statutory pre-application consultation period for the Project is from 29 May to 9 July 2024. We invite you to submit your feedback on the Project during this period.

This letter explains how to take part in the statutory consultation and how you can share your views on the Project.

One Earth Solar Farm

The Project is a proposed solar farm with associated battery energy storage system and infrastructure located at the border of Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire, which would connect into the National Grid substation located at High Marnham, also in Nottinghamshire. We have secured an agreement to supply up to 740MW to the National Grid – enough clean, renewable electricity to meet the needs of more than 200,000 homes.

The planning process

As the Project would generate in excess of 50MW of electrical generating capacity, it is classed as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project under the Act. This means that we must apply to the Secretary of State for a DCO under the Act.

The proposed DCO will, amongst other things, authorise:

construction, operation and decommissioning of ground mounted solar photovoltaic arrays, inverters, transformers, substations, a battery energy storage system, along with underground cables to connect to the High Marnham substation.

other infrastructure works including on-site cabling, ancillary buildings such as offices and welfare areas, access tracks, and any other works identified as necessary to enable the Project.

There would also be parts of the proposed site used for landscaping which would include features such as biodiversity mitigation and enhancement measures, amenity improvements and fencing.

the compulsory acquisition of land and/or rights and the taking of temporary possession of land.

the overriding of easements and other rights over or affecting land.

the application and/or disapplication of legislation relating to the Project.

such ancillary, incidental and consequential provisions, licences, property rights, permits and consents as are necessary and/or convenient.

powers to undertake highway improvement works in order to facilitate the construction, operation and decommissioning of the Project.

More guidance on the pre-application process and the Act can be found on the Planning Inspectorate’s website: http://infrastructure.planninginspectorate.gov.uk/legislation-and­advice/
Environmental Impact Assessment

The Project is an ‘EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment) development’ for the purposes of the EIA Regulations. The Applicant has therefore produced a Preliminary Environmental Information Report (‘PEIR’) which contains preliminary information about the likely significant environmental effects of the Project, together with a non-technical summary of this information.

Further environmental studies and assessments are being undertaken, and a full Environmental Statement will be produced and submitted with the proposed application.

How you can find out more

The statutory consultation will run from Wednesday 29 May to Tuesday 9 July 2024, and we would welcome your feedback at this stage. There are a variety of ways that you can find out more about the Project and take part in the consultation.

Information Events

We will be hosting a number of public events to allow individuals to find out more about the Project and speak with the project team at the following times and locations:

Friday, 7 June 2024 4-8 pm | Dunham on Trent Village Hall, Dunham NG22 0FJ

Saturday, 8 June 2024 12 -4 pm | St Peters Church Newton on Trent, Lincoln LN1 2JS

Wednesday, 12 June 2024 2-6 pm | South Clifton Coronation Hall South Clifton, NG23 ?AN

Thursday, 13 June 2024 12 – 4 pm | Normanton Village Hall Normanton on Trent

Tuesday, 18 June 2024 6- 7 pm | Webinar -Please visit our website to register: oneearthsolarfarm.co.uk

Saturday, 29 June 2024 12 -4 pm | South Clifton Coronation Hall South Clifton, NG23 7 AN

Wednesday, 3 July 2024 6-7 pm | Webinar -Please visit our website to register: oneearthsolarfarm.co.uk

Consultation Materials

We have developed a variety of materials to provide more information about the Project, including:

a consultation booklet showing the nature and location of the Project.
a consultation questionnaire to gather feedback on the Project.
the PEIR.
a Statement of Community Consultation (SoCC) which was developed in accordance with section 47 of the Act and explains how we will consult with the community.

The consultation materials will be available in several formats and locations from 29 May 2024 to 9 July 2024. All consultation materials will be available to download online free of charge at https://oneearthsolarfarm.co.uk/document-library/ or free of charge on a USB on request using the details in this letter. Printed copies of the consultation booklet, SoCC and questionnaire are available free of charge upon request using the details in this letter. Requests for hard copies of the PEIR will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis, and a fee to cover printing costs (up to a maximum of £750 for one full set of consultation documents) may be charged to the recipient.

Printed copies of consultation materials, including the SoCC, will be available to view at the following community access locations during the consultation period (please check opening times before travelling):

Community Access Locations

South Clifton Sports Pavilion, South Clifton, Newark NG23 7 AH |  After 5:30pm on Fridays

The Courtyard Tea Room, Collingham Rd, Newton on Trent, Lincoln LN1 2LL | 9am – 3pm Tuesdays – Fridays

Saxilby Library, St Andrews Centre, William St, Saxilby LN1 2LP | 10:30am – 4pm Tuesdays, 10:30am – 1 pm Wednesdays- Fridays

St Helen’s Church, Main Street, Thomey,Newa􀀟,NG23 7EU | 11 am – 4pm Sundays

Bassetlaw District Council, 178 The Square, Retford, Notts, DN22 608 | 9am – 5pm Mondays-Fridays

Bassetlaw District Council, Queens Buildings, Potter St, Worksop S80 2AH | 9am – 5pm Mondays-Fridays

Newark and Sherwood District Council, Castle House, Great North Rd, Newark NG24 1 BY | 9am – 5pm Mondays-Fridays

West Lindsey District Council, Guildhall Marshall’s Yard, Marshalls Yard, 13b Beaumont St, Gainsborough DN21 2NA | 9c1m – 5pm Mondays-Fridays

How you can share your views
If you wish to submit a consultation response, you must do so in writing by the consultation deadline of 11 :59pm on 9 July 2024. You can provide your feedback in the following ways:

Complete a questionnaire online at the project website: oneearthsolarfarm.co.uk
Complete a paper questionnaire and return to the Freepost address:

One Earth Solar Farm,
Freepost SEC NEWGATE UK LOCAL (no stamp is required

Send written comments by post to the Freepost address above, or by email to info@oneearthsolarfarm.co.uk

Next steps
Following this consultation, we will consider all the feedback we receive and continue refining the Project before submitting a DCO application to the Planning Inspectorate in Q1 2025. The DCO application will include a Consultation Report, which will set out how we have consulted on the Project, summarise the responses received and explain how we have had regard to them.
Any comments received will be analysed by the Applicant and any of its appointed agents. Copies may be made available to the Secretary of State, the Planning Inspectorate and other relevant statutory authorities so that feedback can be considered part of the DCO process.

For certain parties, those who own an interest in land or are affected by the Project, the Applicant is under a statutory duty to publish names and addresses as part of its DCO application. In respect of other people, we will request that your personal details are not placed on public record and these will be held securely by the Applicant in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998 and the General Data Protection Regulation and used solely in connection with the consultation process and subsequent DCO application and, except as noted above, will not be passed to third parties.

The Planning Inspectorate has published details of how it manages comments received in a Privacy Notice available on its website:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/planning-inspectorate-privacy­
notices/customer-privacy-notice.

Should you have any questions, wish to discuss the Project further or to request copies of the consultation documents, please do get in touch by:

• Calling 0800 169 6507 (9am-5pm, Monday to Friday)
• Emailing info@oneearthsolarfarm.co.uk
• Writing to One Earth Solar Farm FREEPOST SEC Newgate UK Local