Controversial £50m solar farm earmarked for Ayrshire countryside expected to be 'waved through'- despite environmental fears from leading academics

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Two leading Professors at Oxford University have voiced safety concerns over plans to build a £50m solar farm in the Ayrshire countryside.Ayrshire Live can exclusively reveal how the two academics fear the possibility of lithium-ion fires, explosions and even clouds of toxic gas at the massive battery storage unit, planned for Loch Fergus, near Coylton.Plans for the near 100,000-panel solar farm were first unveiled in June last year by French-owned renewable energy firm Locogen.

They identified agricultural land to the north of Loch Fergus, 3.3km east of Ayr and just under 1km west of Coylton, where they hope to build the solar farm on a 58.2 hectare site.But the proposals, said to be worth £50m in terms of investment, sparked a wave of opposition from residents living near the site.

In the wake of the plans being unveiled a group called ‘No to Loch Fergus Solar Farm’ was formed.And one of the figureheads, James Knox, a custodian of the nearby Martnaham Loch, a designated SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest) claimed the proposals would wreck the local eco-system and become a danger to wildlife.The Ayrshire Live app is available to download now.Get all the local news in your area – plus features, football news and the latest on the coronavirus crisis – at your fingertips 24/7.The free download features the latest breaking news and exclusive stories while you can customise your page with the sections that matter to you.The Ayrshire Live app is available to download now on iOS and Android.Now he’s enlisted the help of Professor Peter Dobson OBE, Professor Emeritus at The Queen’s College and Department of Engineering Science, Oxford University and Professor Peter Edwards FRS, Emeritus Statutory Professor of Inorganic