Planning and the future of agriculture
Although ambitious targets for reducing greenhouse gases are presenting new challenges to conventional farming methods, with great challenges, comes even greater opportunity!
Yet, due to the range of factors councils must consider when determining applications for decarbonisation schemes, ranging from biodiversity, heritage, and landscape impacts, it is always best to seek professional advice before embarking on schemes, regardless of scale.
A highly effective lower cost decarbonisation solution with an abundance of wider benefits is carbon sequestration. European Agroforestry Federation research found when planting at a density of 50 to 100 trees per hectare, carbon sequestration per hectare is one to four tonnes per year. Simultaneously, the approach has wider economic benefits for agribusinesses such as enhanced farm productivity, profitability, flood alleviation and soil health.
An asset of agribusinesses is land. Increased land enhances diversification opportunities.
Renewable energy generation is an innovative way for farmers to offset emissions from business operations while reducing energy costs. It also provides opportunities for farmers to earn money exporting excess energy to the grid.
Capital costs for delivering solar energy schemes have decreased substantially recently and national planning policy emphasises the importance of small-scale renewable schemes. However, councils will want to know the energy generating potential of schemes, making professional advice imperative.
Connor Burns is a graduate planner in the Chester office of Fisher German
