Two new solar projects put forward to councils

Two solar farm schemes - in the Harborough and Charnwood areas of Leicestershire - have been put forward

Proposals for two major solar farms in Leicestershire, which could power a total of about 13,000 homes, have been put forward.

One is for land off High Cross Road, in Claybrooke Magna, and would be equivalent to the size of 53 football pitches.

The other would be sited at Horse Leys Farm, east of Burton on the Wolds, a few miles from Loughborough, and would cover the same area as 30 football pitches.

As the schemes are at an early stage, there is currently no timescale for the application process.

The land, at Horse Leys Farm, is described in a document submitted to the council as "arable farmland and vineyards"

The documents for the High Cross Road scheme, from Third Revolution Projects, have been sent to Harborough District Council.

These state the site, currently farmland, is approximately 38.4 hectares in area and would have the capacity of producing up to 30MW, which roughly translates into powering 8,000 homes for 40 years.

It also said the land would have "continued agricultural use", as the panels would be mounted off the ground, said the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

This first stage is not a planning application but a "screening opinion", which means the applicant wants to establish whether the project needs an environmental impact assessment (EIA).

The Burton on the Wolds scheme, from agent Union 4 Planning, acting on behalf of IBE Horse Leys, comes under the remit of Charnwood Borough Council.

It is at a similar stage, in which developers are asking the council whether additional environmental assessments must be carried out.

If built, it would be a mile and a half from a £35m solar farm at Wymeswold Airfield, which was said to be the largest in the UK when it opened more than a decade ago.

Also expected to be in use for 40 years, Union 4 admits the solar farm will have a "significant" effect at "viewpoints close to the site", but promised extra greenery to mitigate the impact.