A FARM near Exbourne is applying for permission to install solar panels to provide energy to refrigerate produce on an organic farm.

The application, 4227/22/FUL, for Hayes Farm also seeks to install a wildlife pond to create a secure breeding site for a population of 60 water voles which were reintroduced back onto the site in 2021.

A statement submitted with the application said: ‘On site is and will be a processing and storage unit for our farm produce. This includes perishable produce which requires refrigeration.

‘We want to install a 24KW array of ground mounted panels behind our processing unit, so that our ‘on farm’ production and processing is energy self-sufficient and sustainable.’

The proposal is to add a wildlife pond 250 metres from the solar array with the aim of creating a breeding site which wold allow water voles to go forth and breed at a number of sites in the surrounding area.

‘Our goal is to re-establish a substantive, genetically diverse population back into our parish in West Devon and beyond,’ said the statement.

‘The Devon Small Mammal Group conducted a survey of our farm and found a thriving colony of water voles.’

It said the pond aimed to increase the number of water voles, 'to encourage spread, increase the size of populations and enhance chance of colony survival'.

‘'The pond will add complexity to our wetland landscapes, helping to confound hunting mink, which can eradicate water vole populations along simple linear features such as river banks. Most importantly in its structure it will provide a refuge for water voles and water birds during flood conditions, in particular as this pond is not connected to the water course.’

Comments are invited on the application by June 6 via the planning section of the WDBC website.

An application has been submitted to demolish a barn and replace it with a house at Dunterton on the Devon side of the Tamar Valley.


The application, 0630/23/FUL, is for the barn, Greystone Barn, to be replaced by a timber-framed house. The site is just outside the boundary of the Tamar Valley AONB.

A statement by Fleming Homes said said the replacement of the corrugated iron barn with a timber framed house would enhance its appearance.

‘We feel that by removing the existing large barn which is not attractive in appearance and replacing it with a new dwelling which has been designed to fit in with the local character will have a positive impact on the AONB and the mitigation measures being applied will help to screen not only the new house but the remaining agricultural buildings.’