Solar power, Solar power plant | – Will use the finest areas for solar parks

If you haven’t quite waited for windmills, then you must follow along now. In several places in the country, there will be ground-mounted solar parks, Nettavisen wrote this winter. But the Norwegian Hunters and Fishermen’s Association in Vestfold (NJFFV) will have none of that. Sandefjords Blad writes this.

“A multitude of plant and animal species live in forest areas, and by building down forests to install solar parks, the habitats of many species are destroyed,” states the NJFFV in a recently adopted resolution.

Namely, there are plans for solar cell systems in several places in Vestfold county, at Brunlanes and Tjølling.

– We don’t have very much forest in Vestfold, especially in the outer parts of the county, and it is important to take care of what little we have left, says board member Jan Thore Nalum to Sandefjords Blad.

The association believes that such facilities should rather be added to areas that have already been developed.

More solar power plants may come

It is the power company Aneo that plans to build a solar park on 345 acres in Brunlanes. The landowners must have already signed agreements to rent the area, writes Sandefjords Blad. Skagerak Kraft also has plans for a 500-acre solar power plant in Vestfold, the newspaper writes.

The Norwegian Directorate of Agriculture has investigated the consequences of solar power plants on agricultural and forestry areas. They believe that solar power plants in such areas contribute to deforestation.

– Deforestation for solar power development is therefore in addition to deforestation that occurs for other downsizing purposes and will therefore represent a new driver behind deforestation in Norway, said section head Aud-Ingrid Krefting in the Directorate of Agriculture to Nettavisen earlier this year.

Destroyer for hunters and berry pickers

Nalum in the NJFFV says that the solar developers would prefer to have the best forest areas.

– It is usually in the finest hiking areas and in the middle of the deer game drives. It will destroy us who enjoy nature, hunters, mushroom and berry pickers and outdoor enthusiasts.

NVE informs Nettavisen that they are aware of up to 50 different major solo projects being planned.