Present:
Angela Silk – Chairperson
Pauline Cooper – Secretary
George Martin – Treasurer
Christine Brown – Committee Member
Maureen Lambton – Committee Member
Helen Fife – Committee Member
Theresa Dalby – Committee Member

In Attendance:
Liz Reid – Committee Advisor
Harry Trueman – Ward Councillor
Jimmy Warne – Ward Councillor
Richard Johnston – Project Manager, Northumbrian Water
Jack Spurway – Boom Power, Head of Planning
Rob Smith – Boom Power, Senior Project Developer
Peter Elms – Alpaca Communications

Apologies:
Lesley Pickup – Committee Member
Dennis Lambton – Committee Member

1. Minutes of previous meeting proposed and seconded. Approved.

2. Update from Richard Johnston:

Reservoir – The revised planning application has been lodged with the Planning Department. If approved (probably in mid-October) this will reduce the size of the reservoir and change the top surface from grass to gravel chippings. At the access to the site on Mount Lane, the land has now been restored to its previous state. There is still some tidying up to be done. Contract 1 is now out to tender and due back in October. There are 3 contractors on the list. Richard assured residents that they had learnt some lessons from the work done so far. Further information will be brought to the next Residents Meeting. Northumbrian Water expect contractors to be on site February to March 2023. Contract 2 (the pipeline) will be put out to tender after Contract 1 has been agreed. Work on the pipeline is expected to start in late Spring 2023. Some advance work has already started on preparing hedgerows etc on Peareth Hall Road.

A question and answer session followed the update. The need to change the top from grass to gravel was a concern for several residents. Richard reiterated Northumbrian Waters view that industry best practice had changed and now recommended gravel. This made inspections of the reservoir easier for them and should not affect wildlife. Maintenance of the gravel will consist of weeding and pesticides. Residents were informed that the Committee had objected to this change to the Planning Department. The issue as to what would happen to the material excavated from the site was raised. Richard said the material will be removed from the site. Some stones will need to be broken on site to enable its removal but stone crushing as experienced on the site so far will not take place. The sites susceptibility to flooding was raised. Richard said there is a plan in place for this. Also, some 25 metres of hedgerows will need to be removed to enable large pipes to be put into the Reservoir but this will be replaced. There will not be a footpath along Mount Lane for pedestrians as there is no room. Residents were concerned that the earth mound had been removed from the front of the site but mounds were now appearing at the rear of the housing site near Wordsworth Crescent. Richard agreed to discuss this with Esh Homes.

3. Solar Farm Proposal

The Chairperson clarified to the meeting that this presentation by Boom Power is NOT part of their formal consultation exercise.

Boom Power informed the Meeting that plans were still at an early stage. They had asked Sunderland Council if they needed to do an Environmental Assessment for the plan and Sunderland Council had told them no Assessment was needed. Councillor Trueman interjected that the Council had issued Boom Power with a long list of issues that needed to be addressed by Boom rather than just saying no Assessment was needed. Boom Power agreed with this statement.

Boom Power, previously Wirsol Energy, had built 25 solar farms in other parts of the country such as Anglesey and Yorkshire. They currently have another 15 large applications underway. This site attracted them because it had access to the National Grid.

The following issues were raised by Residents :-

• Politicians, including the Prime Minister,  have stated they are opposed to solar farms of greenfield/Green Belt land. Why are you continuing with this?  Boom Power – because there is no planning policy saying we cannot do it. Asked why not use brownfield sites as greenbelt land is needed for food production? Boom Power responded that carbon neutral energy is needed, also brownfield sites are more expensive to build on as they are often contaminated, making them more suitable for housing. Boom Power continued that the electricity generated will receive no subsidies and is sold at an economic rate and therefore needs to be produced economically. Residents disagreed, noting that other local solar farm sites are on brownfield sites eg one in Gateshead and the car parks at the Metrocentre. Another resident said that since other Boom Power projects were not on greenbelt why couldn’t they pursue brownfield or countryside sites ie not greenbelt.
• Residents asked how the site would be owned and managed. Boom Power replied that they would lease the land from the landowner. The life of the solar farm is expected to be about 40 years but noted it was possible this could be extended. The plan is to produce 27.3 megawatts, using 60% of the 90 hectare site, producing 4 megawatts per acre. These figures were queried by residents who had seen much lower output (1 megawatt) quoted as being possible from the size of the site. Boom Power maintained that they expect a much higher level of production. A resident asked if there was a risk that the whole site within the red line (as shown on the details submitted to Sunderland Council) could be used for the solar farm? Boom Power responded that the current plan is to leave some of the site as farmland but yes, the whole site could be used by the solar farm. The land will continue to be designated greenbelt. Several residents were very concerned about this as reports produced by various national groups believe developers will argue that the land is no longer greenbelt as it has had structures on it and will attempt to build on the sites in the future. A resident queried the age and durability of Boom Power, worried about what would happen to the site if Boom Power no longer existed. Boom Power said that is not expected to happen but money would be available to clear the site. The resident felt that Boom Power were not really committed to green energy and were speculators just in the business for the profits.
• Resident asked what benefits there would be to local residents. Boom: there would be a buffer to the footpaths; wildlife would thrive; improved biodiversity; 11,000 homes per year would be powered; possible community benefit fund to finance local projects
• The solar panels will be mounted on steel pylons piled into the ground. The depth the pylons will need to go down is not yet known and will require future investigations. There will also be fencing and CCTV cameras around the site. It is possible sheep will be on the site, discussions with the landowner are ongoing. Residents noted that the fencing listed in the information provided to Sunderland Council will be 2 metres high. Boom Power said the fencing would be “deer fencing” and there would still be public footpaths outside for local people to use. A resident asked what benefit would the solar farm be to local people? Boom Power said they thought wildlife would benefit. Residents felt the view would be spoilt and walks in the area would be not as enjoyable. Boom Power said a community benefit fund could possibly be established. Residents noted current wildlife in these fields included linnets and skylarks and yellowhammers. Removing any of the very well-established hedgerows would destroy their habitat. A resident asked if the land not used would remain Greenbelt. Boom Power said that was up to Sunderland Council.
• Solar Panels – These would be placed with the lower edge 1 metre (3 feet) from the ground with the upper edge 2.8 metres (9 feet) from the ground. Each module would be about 26 metres (85 feet) long. They would be non-reflective. There would be no battery storage facilities on the site. Concerns were raised about the noise of installation and the suitability of the proposed access to the site. Boom Power claimed the noise of the installation would only be like the farmer putting new fenceposts around the field. Residents noted the fire brigade had experienced problems getting fire engines onto the farmland recently. Boom Power said the farmer had assured them he gets large trucks/lorries onto the site using the proposed entry lane (the narrow public right of way footpath that runs behind housing on Heugh Hill). Boom Power stated they only expected 1 lorry a day to need to access the site over 5 to 6 months. Concerns were raised about security on the site as the Gateshead Solar Farm had experienced theft and vandalism requiring increased security. Concerns were also raised about how secure the pylons would be, noting the very high winds and damage that local residents experience due to the sites exposure to the winds coming off the North Sea.
  
  The Chairperson thanked Boom Power for the information.

4. Date and Time of next meeting: To be confirmed.