Planning regs to be relaxed for small scale renewable energy generators

16 March 2012

Government plans recently announced will make small-scale renewable energy generators on farms exempt from planning regulations. The change means planning permission will no longer be required for farmers who install renewable generators such as solar panels on existing buildings and anaerobic digesters on farming or non-domestic land.

Increased amounts of renewable generators on farm will mean lower energy costs for farmers, while the move is also a significant step on the route to de-regulation by government.  This comes as good news to farmers as it will enable the installation of some small scale renewable energy generation without the need to obtain planning permissions - reducing their energy costs and improving the environmental impact of production.

The full amendment to the Town and Country planning regulation can be seen here.