The Marlborough District Council has asked for more
information about a solar farm proposal, such as possible
glare from panels and their lifespan.

Neighbours of
the site, on Dillons Point Rd near Blenheim, have previously
expressed their opposition to the farm going on the
land.

The 8-hectare site was bought by Marlborough
Lines last year with the intention of constructing a solar
farm on the site.

The consent was lodged by a
Marlborough-based resource management consulting company in
March on behalf of Energy Marlborough, a subsidiary of
Marlborough Lines.

The consent application said
establishment of the proposed solar farm would involve an
archaeological assessment before work started, upgrades to
the vehicle entrance on the property, and new fencing to
restrict site access.

A new overhead power line across
the Ōpaoa River was also proposed.

In a letter to the
consulting company dated May 17, the council requested more
information on six different topics.

These
included:

1. Water take and use: The consent
application said water would be needed to wash the solar
panels and to support the farm, which would require a
permit.

The letter asked for the quantity of water
that would be needed per use.

2. Boundary fencing: The
council sought clarification on whether a solid stone fence
and landscaping on the entrance of the site would be kept. A
licence to occupy would be needed if this was the
case.

3. Glint and glare assessment: The applicant was
asked to provide a glint and glare assessment from a
suitably qualified and experienced practitioner.

That
assessment needed to include effects on neighbours, road
users and recreation users of the Ōpaoa River and Kotuku
Trail.

4. Ecological assessment: An ecological
assessment from a suitably qualified and experienced
practitioner was requested.

5. Landscape architect
assessment: The council asked for a landscape architect’s
assessment and site renders from the east, looking across
Ōpaoa River from the Kotuku Trail, which was the most
affected point of the trail.

6. Old and damaged solar
panels: The letter sought clarification on the lifespan of
the solar panels, how regularly they would be checked for
damage, what they were made of, and whether any toxic
materials could adversely affect the environment, should
leachate occur. An assessment was requested from someone
suitably qualified.

The letter said the requested
information would allow the council to better understand the
solar farm’s actual and potential effects on the
environment.

Under the Resource Management Act,
acknowledgement of the letter needed to be responded to
within 15 working days.

If this did not happen, the
council had to publicly notify the application, opening it
up to public submissions.

Neighbours last year told
Local Democracy Reporting they had concerns about the site
being in a flood and tsunami zone.

“This is an
industrial installation and the risks of having it this
close to residents is something that we’re not prepared to
put up with,” one neighbour said.

The site was also
close to the Wairau Bar, one of the oldest archaeological
sites in New Zealand.

The consent application said
Energy Marlborough was aware of and acknowledged the
extensive historic Māori activity in the area associated
with the Waikārapi/Vernon Lagoons.

The application
confirmed that the site was within a flood hazard area and
accepted there were associated risks, providing an image
showing the area in flood in 2008.

To mitigate this
risk, the application said it would establish minimum
“floor levels for habitable structures” of 450mm above
natural ground.

The consent application said once
operational, the proposed farm would make a significant
contribution to Marlborough’s electricity supply, most of
which was transmitted from South Canterbury and incurred
“considerable energy transmission losses”.

The
farm was expected to generate 1.5% of the region’s annual
energy demand, which would reduce the amount of energy that
had to be brought into the region and the associated
transmission losses.

Marlborough Lines chief executive
Tim Cosgrove said the council’s decision to seek
clarification was just part of its thorough consent
process.

He said they were still awaiting a decision
from the council on whether the application would need to be
publicly notified.

LDR is local body journalism
co-funded by RNZ and NZ On
Air.

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