A SOLAR farm proposed for fields on the edge of a village near Taunton would produce enough electricity to power 5,563 homes, it is claimed.

Novus Renewable Services Ltd wants to construct the facility on 30 hectares of agricultural land south of Ham Farm, Creech St Michael.

A planning application to Somerset West and Taunton Council outlines proposals for the solar farm, along with battery storage, infrastructure, substation buildings, inverters, transformers, security fencing and access tracks.

If permission is granted, the fields, which are currently used for arable use and pasture for livestock, would revert to agricultural use after 40 years.

Existing hedges would be strengthened to screen the proposed development and all areas containing solar panels would be planted with grassland.

Novus claims people who attended a public consultation in May were generally supportive of the project, although there were some concerns about the potential visual impact.

A statement with the planning application says: "The site was chosen for the development of solar development as it has a sufficient area of level open ground, a good level of solar irradiance and is free from constraints such as overshadowing and statutory environmental designations.

"The site is also well located to facilitate the connection to the National Grid."

The proposed development would be remotely monitored and operated with an automated system alerting an engineer in case of component or system issues.

Monthly maintenance visits in a light van or four-wheel drive vehicle would ensure all features are in good condition and working order and the panels would be cleaned periodically.

The construction of the solar farm would take around 16 weeks to complete, during which period there would be a peak average daily flow of 14 vehicle movements.

It is estimated the solar farm would offset approximately 4,600 tonnes of CO2 emissions every year.