Stocking Pelham is a quiet rural village in East Hertfordshire, home to just 70 properties and 165 residents, yet we are being relentlessly targeted for industrial scale battery storage and solar energy developments.

We are not against clean energy. But the scale and number of these developments in such a small area is disproportionate, dangerous, and damaging to our community.

We are calling on East Herts Council and UK planning authorities to pause and rethink the cumulative impact of this rapid industrialisation. The latest proposal, a 90 MW battery energy storage site at Dellows (Ref: 3/25/0917/FUL), is just one of many large projects that threaten to turn our village into a noisy, congested, and hazardous energy hub.

What We’re Facing:

✅ Pelham Substation and Battery Site – Already built and operational. It hums day and night and has altered the soundscape of our village.

🚧 Green’s Farm BESS – Approved. Another 50 MW battery site bringing years of construction traffic via our tiny lanes.

🔥 Hixham Hall BESS – Approved. At 400 MW, it’s one of the largest in the UK. This alone brings nearly 5,000 HGV movements to our parish.

⚠️ Berden Hall Solar Farm – Approved by Government. Over 170 acres of solar panels, fencing, and substations next to the village.

🛑 Crabb’s Green BESS – Refused (thankfully). But developers continue to submit similar proposals.

➕ Now Dellows – A brand new battery facility application. More traffic, more noise, more risk.

Why We’re Concerned:

Traffic Chaos: Country lanes not built for heavy goods vehicles. Thousands of construction trips will gridlock the area and endanger lives.

Noise Pollution: The existing battery site already hums day and night. Each new facility adds more audible disturbance.

Landscape Erosion: Our open countryside is being eaten up by metal containers, fencing, and solar panels.

Safety Risks: Battery fires are extremely hard to put out and could release toxic gases. Water access for firefighting is inadequate.

Loss of Identity: We are a small rural village, not an energy corridor. Developers are exploiting our proximity to the grid for profit, with no respect for local life.

We Are Not Saying “No” to Clean Energy

We are saying enough is enough to clustering it all in one small place. National targets should not come at the cost of local wellbeing.

We Demand:

1. A pause on new industrial energy developments in and around Stocking Pelham
2. A full cumulative impact assessment before any further planning approvals
3. Respect for our rural character, road safety, and community wellbeing
4. Transparent planning processes that consider the voice of local residents 

We are not saying “not in our backyard” — we are stewards of this countryside and deserve to live without the constant threat of overdevelopment.

Please sign and share this petition
 
Let East Herts Council and the Government know that Stocking Pelham is not a dumping ground for energy developers.