Massive 3,700-panel green energy project gets green light as Bigham's ramps up push to go net zero by 2025

Charlie Bigham's has been given the go-ahead to build a huge solar farm on a disused landfill near Shepton Mallet — in a £5million plan to power its Dulcote kitchen and supply free electricity to Wells recycling centre.

Somerset Council has approved the 3,700-panel array, which will be mounted on 1.25 hectares of overgrown former tip land east of the Quarry Kitchen site. The 2.2 megawatt system will generate enough juice to cover 35% of the kitchen's electricity needs, cutting carbon emissions by more than 260 tonnes a year.

Some of the power will also go straight to the neighbouring Dulcote Recycling Centre, with Bigham's footing the bill.

Bosses say the scheme will be a "serious investment" that shows what can be done when councils and businesses work together to tackle climate change — and all without touching public money.

Deliveries for the build will be timed for when the tip's shut to avoid traffic chaos, and no new roads will be needed. The site will be accessed through the existing recycling centre gate. Panels will be fixed using low-impact anchors to protect the ground beneath, and a pedestrian access path will link up with the kitchen site.

The move follows a rooftop solar install at the site in 2020 — and brings the company another step closer to its 2025 net zero target.

But 232 trees will be cut down to make way for the panels, with replanting to take place elsewhere as part of a biodiversity plan signed off with the council.

The site itself — hidden from view by thick vegetation and trees — was once a landfill and is considered unsuitable for farming or housing. The council previously declared a climate emergency and wants to go carbon neutral by 2030.

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