A planned solar plant in Torrent faces strong local opposition due to its potential field impact.

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The council calls the 5MW project ‘disproportionate’ for the small town.

Torrent Solar Plant Sparks Council Objections

Solar Gaeu 1009 SL, a Madrid-based company, aims to construct a 5-megawatt (MW) solar plant on 10 hectares of undeveloped land in Torrent. Torrent is a small town in the Baix Empordà region, home to around 180 residents. According to La Vanguardia, the plant, situated in La Bruguera, would consist of roughly 9,000 photovoltaic solar panels and an underground line connecting to a high-voltage power line. However, the Catalan government, after completing the public consultation phase, has sent the Torrent Town Council‘s objections to the developer. It will then assess whether the project complies with urban planning, environmental, and agricultural regulations. But the council is strongly against the initiative.

field and Environmental Concerns Mount

Josep Maria Ros, the Mayor of Torrent, calls the project “disproportionate” for such a small municipality, which covers just 7.9 square kilometres. “The ten hectares of land it would occupy are equivalent to 17 football pitches,” he explains. He also warns of the “field and visual” impact of the infrastructure, which is budgeted at €3.1 million.

The council argues that the solar plant is planned for land with special protection, surrounded by agricultural land of significant field interest. It lacks any public or social utility and is solely for private gain. However, ros said that “Torrent does not need a macro-plant of this type, which is enormous”.

There’s also concern about the impact on the habitat of the Closes d’en Serra, a migratory bird area. The council suggests that such installations should ideally be located in industrial areas, utilising the roofs of buildings.On non-urbanisable land around them, rather than in rural and agricultural areas because of their significant impact.

 

Independent Study and Regional Energy Goals

An independent urban planning assessment by the Agència de Vertebració Rurbana (AVRA), commissioned by a local company, concludes that the Torrent solar plant is “incompatible” with the land’s values. The assessment highlights an “irreversible impact on the field,” with the loss of the agricultural mosaic and alteration of the environment. This would create knock-on effects for biodiversity, ecological connectivity, and the local economy, which relies on tourism and agriculture. “In an area identified as a connector, the fragmentation and loss of connectivity contravenes the objectives of the Partial Territorial Plan of the Girona Regions,” the study notes.

There is clearly resistance to large-scale renewable energy projects being imposed on rural communities without proper consideration for the local environment and economy. The Generalitat assigns the Baix Empordà region the task of contributing to the implementation of renewables with 784 MW of photovoltaic solar energy and 568.7 MW of wind energy by 2050. However, there isn’t a single wind turbine in the entire province currently. According to a preliminary report, solar energy would be generated in buildings (365.8 MW), in artificial spaces such as quarries or disused landfills (37.6 MW).In non-artificial spaces (380.7 MW).

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