Scotland To Build Country’s Largest Solar Farm

While the US president and his administration continue the war against renewable energy and sensible regulations against carbon emissions, other countries are taking drastically different routes. Proving that a sunny disposition is not necessary when it comes to committing to clean power, Scotland is now planning on building the biggest solar farm in the country.

No one can say that Scotland is a country that gets a huge amount of sunlight, but this didn’t seem to stop the nation’s leaders from making a decision when it comes to its energy needs. Specifically, the decision came from the Moray Council, and the location chosen for the farm is somewhere in the Scottish Highlands. The farm itself is meant to cover 47 hectares, Futurism reports, and house over 80,000 solar panels.

The company that will be building this farm is Elgin Energy and in a statement to the BBC, the firm assured that no damage to the surrounding farmlands will result from building the farm. Considering just how much damage coal and oil power plants are known to cause to surrounding areas, this is another advantage to renewable energy.

"Existing field boundaries will not be disturbed and mature hedgerows will provide generous screening for the site,” the statement reads. “Elgin Energy has contacted those neighbours in the immediate vicinity of the site and has offered to answer any queries which might arise. The land will remain in agricultural use in the form of sheep grazing while being used for the dual purpose of generating low-carbon renewable energy."

Moray Council member Claire Feaver also expressed a positive attitude towards this new setup, saying that it’s a win for everyone involved.

"A significant amount of renewable energy will be generated by this solar farm over the next 30 years,” she said. “The opportunity to continue grazing on the land, together with the habitat management plan, will maintain and enhance the diverse range of species in and around the site. I see this as a win-win."