RESIDENTS in Bulphan and the local rural area have the opportunity to comment after the company currently building a solar panel farm in the area announced it wished to significantly increase HHGV movements.

When planning permission for the solar farm near Bulphan was agreed, the company to Thurrock Council it anticipated that there would be around seven HGV movements into the site and the same amount out on a daily average basis.

Now the site is open and work has started, it has asked the council to take the number of movements in and out to aroundp 25 in each direction - and that a maximum figure be removed.

The solar farm being built by Warley Green Limited is on land adjacent to Fen Farm, Judds Farm and part of Bulphan Fen off Harrow Lane.

The planning agreement currently in force says: "'HGV movements from the site shall be limited to a maximum of 14 two-way movements per day (7 in and 7 out movements).

"A log of HGV movements shall be kept and submitted to the local planning authority for review upon written request. This log shall record details of the registration, origin, destination and operators of each HGV entering and leaving a plot within the site and the time of such movements."

The reason for the limitation is given as 'in the interests of amenity and highway and pedestrian safety'.

In its new submission Warley Green admits it botched its planning and failed to restimate the real need for HGV movedments because it didn't include relevant data and figures.

The application says

• The calculations failed to adequately account for mounting equipment and cable needs.
• The calculations did not capture the requirements for extra materials required to accommodate the 'no-dig' archaeology areas.
• The calculations underestimated the number of deliveries associated with laying the access track and providing all the materials for the SuDS for ancillary buildings.

The full detail of the revisied planning statement can be read via this link.

The planning application can be viewed here (and you can comment) or residents can support or object to it before 13 July by commenting online on Thurrock Council's planning portal or you can write to the planning officer Lucy Mannion at Thurrock Council Civic Offices, New Road, Grays, RM17 6SL.