Plans for a battery energy storage system (BESS) in Yorkshire have been squashed owing to significant concerns from the local council.
At a council meeting on 5 December, the Murton Parish Council denied planning permission for the 100MW Murton Way BESS proposed by Net Zero Fourteen Limited. Councillors cited several reasons for refusing the project.
The development would have featured 104 battery units spread over the 3.4-hectare site and 14 transformers connected to the nearby Osbaldwick substation.
Among the reasons for refusing planning permission for the project are concerns over fire safety, as the site could only have one narrow access track in and out, which could easily become blocked in the event of a fire. As such, Murton Parish Council called the proposed Fire Strategy Plan “inadequate”.
Also featured in Murton Parish Council’s list of objections to the project is the location of the project in Yorkshire’s Green Belt, on what the council notes is productive farmland. The council also raised concerns that after the 40-year proposed lifespan of the development, the land would be unable to be returned to its original state due to the prohibitive cost of such rehabilitation. Osbaldwick Parish Council also strongly objected to the proposed BESS and spoke in support of Murton Parish Council.
Among the other objectors is York Traveller’s Trust, which represents the local community of travellers in the area. The York Traveller’s Trust notes that the Noise Assessment for the proposed development suggests that the noise from the BESS could have a detrimental impact on the wellbeing of the nearby Traveller Site while also raising concerns about groundwater pollution.
However, not everyone in the area was against the development. Around 56 letters of support were received by the council compared to just seven letters of public objection, with supporters stating that the environmental risks of the climate crisis far outweigh the risks to the local area from development of the BESS.
The application was declined despite the developers noting that the project had received a viable grid connection offer, which the denial letter notes “does lend some weight” in favour of the development. However, the council ultimately concluded that the proposed BESS would constitute “inappropriate development” in the Green Belt and thus refused permission.
