A campaign group is hoping to launch a legal challenge against the government’s decision to approve plans for a solar farm in North Yorkshire.
The 190MW Helios solar farm, near Selby, was granted permission by the government despite campaigners arguing it would industrialise the rural area and impact on the lives of local people.
Now, campaign group HALT has begun fundraising after it received legal advice that a judicial review of the decision had a good chance of success.
HALT’s Byron Ward said the group believed there were “serious and arguable legal flaws” in the planning decision “which can only be tested by bringing a judicial review.”
He said the group was hoping to raise more than £15,000, with about £7,500 already pledged, and submit the review within days.
In December, Energy Minister Martin McCluskey said the project was a step towards making Britain a clean energy superpower.
He said: “Families in Yorkshire have seen their energy bills go through the roof as a result of our exposure to volatile gas prices.
“The only way to make British people better off in the long-term is by securing clean, homegrown power that we control.”
According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the project will be one of the largest of its kind in the UK, covering 476 hectares of agricultural land to the west of Camblesforth.
The application for the solar farm, submitted by Enso Energy and Cero Generation, includes a battery energy storage scheme (BESS) that connect to the grid via underground cable at nearby Drax power station.
Developer Enso Energy said the site would provide enough energy to power 47,500 homes.