Identified Dorset sites for renewable energy

Vast areas across Dorset have been highlighted as suitable for renewable energy projects in the latest Local Plan proposals.

The draft includes land earmarked for wind and solar generation as well as battery storage, with opportunity sites stretching between Dorchester and Poole and towards the Dorset-Hampshire border north of Bournemouth.

Dorset Council confirmed that areas with National Landscape status and Sites of Special Scientific Interest would not automatically be excluded, although every project would need full planning consent. Few parts of the county are completely ruled out, with operational airports and airfields among the exceptions.

The county’s limited access to the National Grid remains a challenge, with connections currently focused on Chickerell and Mannington. Until the recent installation at Masters Quarry, Dorset had no large turbines, but the plan identifies sites for blades between 100 and 150 metres in height, as well as medium turbines of 60 to 100 metres and smaller options from 25 to 60 metres.

Solar farms of between 5 and 20 hectares could be possible between Dorchester and Poole, excluding Purbeck, and across the north of the county. The same northern area has been highlighted for large battery storage sites of up to 1GW, alongside a corridor stretching from Crossways, around Poole, and towards Verwood and Three Legged Cross.

Residents and organisations can submit comments on the proposals until the middle of October.


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