Aerial view of a proposed solar farm for Helensville, north of Auckland. Photo / Supplied
Aerial view of a proposed solar farm for Helensville, north of Auckland. Photo / Supplied
Helensville locals are up in arms over plans for a 100-hectare solar farm on the outskirts of the rural town in northwest Auckland.
The solar farm will be built on a dairy farm with 82,000 glass panels to generate renewable electricity to power 14,000 homes, according to a resource consentapplication lodged by a New Zealand-owned, UK-operated company HES Aotearoa.
The solar farm will greatly assist the transition away from fossil fuel energy generation, reduce 11,200 tonnes of carbon emissions a year and contribute to New Zealand's goal of net zero emissions by 2050, the application said.
It said the farm will take about nine months to build with 7.5m to 8m spacing between the rows of panels to allow for cropping or grazing sheep.
The solar panels are designed to reflect just 2 per cent of the light that hits them. Photo / Supplied
A public information event at the Helensville War Memorial Hall on Saturday held by HES Aotearoa attracted more than 200 locals, many opposed to the proposal but also some strong supporters of the project.
Writing on the Proposed Helensville Solar Farm Discussion Group Facebook page, one supporter said he left in disgust due to the "hysterical NIMBY noise", telling locals to just relax and save the planet or would they prefer another boiler at Huntly and more filthy imported Indonesia coal".
Peter Smith-West, a local resident who set up the Facebook page which has more than 300 members, said if the solar farm was built 1km down the road no-one would object, but anyone who has any sort of view in Helensville is going to be looking straight into the solar farm.
A view of the solar farm(marked in red) from a hilltop in Helensville. Photo / Supplied
"The view that I have is one of the major aspects that made me buy a property a couple of years ago and it is going to be blighted," said Smith-West, noting he lives in a heritage zone with rules to maintain the visual impact of the area.
The resource consent application has described the visual effects as minor for all but a handful of Helensville residents, saying the panels are designed to reflect just 2 per cent of the light that hits them, with less glare than crops, grass or water.
Smith-West said the solar farm is about profit for offshore investors.
"They've chosen this location because of its proximity to a substation, making the setup cheaper and maximising profit. They have decided their profit is more important than half of Helensville having an uninterrupted rural view."
Another local who attended the meeting said he had no problem with solar farms, saying renewable energy is part of the future.
The red area shows the extent of the solar farm on the outskirts of Helensville. Photo / Supplied
"The problem for me is where the solar farm will be located. What we have in our town is a site zero kilometres from town: it's in town. We won't be Helensville or Te Awaroa anymore if this goes ahead, we'll be solar city," he said.
An Auckland Council spokeswoman said the applicant has requested the proposal be publicly notified. This will happen once the council has reviewed some more information provided by the applicant and satisfied all required information has been provided, she said.
