Staffordshire marina celebrates planning approval for new solar array
Aston Marina is celebrating the approval of planning for a new solar array on the business’ greenfield site just outside Stone in Staffordshire.
Plans were submitted to Stafford Borough Council 18 months ago in an ambitious bid to source 100 per cent of the energy it takes to run the business – which operates a narrowboat marina, a renowned restaurant and award-winning wedding and events venue.
With plans also in place for a new hotel on site, which will generate more jobs for the local area, the team behind the progressive family business are keener than ever to move to greener energy sources. And the projected stats are pretty impressive – with extensive landscaping planned to minimise the visual impact of the scheme, it has been designed to generate a potential 280,000 KWH per annum - the optimal amount of electricity to be consumed by the business, with minimal excess to be sent back to the National Grid.
The benefits don’t end with supplying the marina with clean energy – the site for the solar array, which occupies a natural basin, is currently underutilised wasteland and unsuitable for agricultural purposes. Further excavation and a comprehensive planting scheme of native trees and shrubs around the 1-hectare site will result in a significant biodiversity net gain; with a 46 per cent increase in habitat units; 65 per cent increase in hedgerow units and an overall increase of 56 per cent in biodiversity; providing more space for wildlife such as pollinators, birds and small mammals to flourish.
Marina director, Helen Clayton, says: “We are delighted to have planning approved for our solar array application. This is a project that has taken over three years’ hard work by the management team, and is core to our commitment of being as environmentally friendly as we can and to minimise the business’s carbon footprint in line with the local and national government Net Zero targets for 2050.
“We were overwhelmed by the level of support for the scheme when we went to public consultation, and took on board concerns raised. This directly informed several design changes, including increased screening and adjustments to panel height and layout.”
The new solar array is one of a number of steps Aston Marina is taking to minimise its environmental impact. Other measures include the installation of both air and ground source heat pumps; an ongoing project to install 10 new EV charging points; the conversion of inefficient tube and filament type lighting around site to highly efficient LED alternatives; the installation of power factor correction equipment and smart monitoring technologies to reduce overall electric use and run the business as efficiently as possible; and the conversion of kitchens electric utilising state-of-the-art efficient induction cooking equipment.
Work on the new solar array will start this month. For more information on Aston Marina head to astonmarina.co.uk.
