Voltis - Community

Building our Relationships

Community Information Event

Before submitting our planning permission to the council, we host one or two meetings in a local venue. This is always a fantastic opportunity to get to know people face to face and for you to get answers to questions on the spot. We will have visual aids to show you what we’re all about as well as ways for you to express any thoughts about the project.

You are our community

We would love to hear from you. We are able to accommodate many requirements concerning access to information and are more than happy to speak to anyone about the projects in a way that is best for them.

Online Resources

We reach out to local schools to either arrange to come in and present a session all about renewable energy and the climate. We will also have the opportunity to form long term relationships with schools and conduct tours of the solar farm and the eco sites, aligning with energy and biology topics in the curriculum and taking the classroom outside.

Have you got ideas of improvements you’d like to see happen? Do you go walking near a planned site? Are you a part of any local wildlife societies?
We would love to hear from you!

Even if the answers are no to all of the above, we’d still like to hear your thoughts on the projects! We are able to accommodate many requirements concerning access to information and are more than happy to speak to anyone about the projects in a way that is best for them.

Get in touch

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Local
BioDiversity

The environment and sustainability is at the heart of what we do and naturally, being able to make important biological impacts on our sites is an exciting opportunity for us. We consult all our different planning specialists as well as reach out to local community experts to see where we can work together to improve the site’s biodiversity.

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Wildflowers & Pollinators

Between the edge of the solar farm and the boundary of the land, there is a band of about 5m in width of space. We can use this for various biodiversity enhancing plans. There is a concerted effort to protect our pollinators and to provide a precious source of sustenance for our butterflies and bees, we can sow areas of local wildflowers.The increase in available food resources will help towards ensuring the security of pollinating species. UK studies have shown that the increase in biodiversity due to the efforts made by improving the areas around the solar site, have a direct financial impact on the yield of local crop fields.

Hedgerows

We look where possible for sites that have existing natural boundaries for a few reasons. Hedgerows provide fantastic natural screening at the peripheries of solar farms, drastically reducing their visual impact. The hedgerows are home for many local species and wherever possible we will grow these to enhance the local ecosystem. We can plant new hedgerows in gaps and any small sections we are granted permission to remove for access purposes, we counter this by ensuring that lost heading is replaced elsewhere on the site.

Shelter

Shelter is a vital resource for wildlife and we can increase the availability of shelter for these animals. We research into the specifics for the local area and use locally sourced materials to provide shelters like bird boxes, bat boxes, insect hotels and reptile shelters. These could make a large difference to the local species particularly during the winter and when rearing their young.

Trees and Ancient Woodland

We analyse any mature trees and scrutinise designs to accommodate where possible. Areas containing Ancient Woodland are approached with care and we investigate the effect of our designs on areas we would like to protect.

Footpaths and Bridleways

Where there are existing footpaths and bridleways, we will ensure that these remain in place or, as a last resort, sensitively rerouted to be enjoyed for years to come. We can also improve sections of public access ways and consult with local walking groups. If we can accommodate, we can include features, such as small meadow sections on the land and ponds designed specifically for the particular area.

Community