Richard Howell, of North Huish, South Brent, writes:

In last week's paper, you reported the fears of farmer Brian Thurston, upset by the apparent lack of concern local authorities give to the appearance of rural areas when considering applications for renewable energy.

Mr Thurston was complaining about the 6,800 solar panels recently planted in two fields close to his property near Ermington.

'It's really upsetting to think that nature doesn't count for anything,' said Mr Thurston, 'and it's OK to put a huge great solar farm right in the middle of it.'

In the same issue you published a letter from Mary Priddey in response to a previous letter from Phil Howling, worried about plans for a proposed 25-acre solar farm on the outskirts of Kingsbridge, more than twice the size of the Ermington array.

Ms Priddey pointed out 'such displays are already proliferating at an alarming rate, turning acres of prime farm land in to great swathes of startling blue solar panels which can be seen for miles around'.

She gave two examples, namely the 32-acre development visible to travellers on the Avonwick to Totnes road beside the Blue Posts garage, and the 45-acre sprawl dominating the skyline at Marley Thatch Farm.

According to your story, the latter is soon to be joined by a 146ft high wind turbine, now the necessary funding has been raised.

Ms Priddey asks who will benefit from this vast acreage of sterile husbandry?

As fields that were green are turned to brown, it will not be the tourist industry, on which so many jobs in the South Hams depend. Nor will it be other residents in need of work, as no local jobs are being created.

Instead, what was once an area of outstanding natural beauty is being sacrificed to satisfy the greed of landowners, seduced by the subsidies on offer, who are aided and abetted by a council that has yet to produce a policy on renewables, and which continues to think it satisfactory to delegate responsibility for such contentious developments to individual councillors.

In each instance, the decisions to permit the solar farms at Marley Thatch, Blue Posts and Ermington were taken behind closed doors by the local ward members in question in conjunction with council officers, in the process ignoring the objections of many of their parish councils.

Were that not bad enough, South Hams councillors have also failed to produce a new local plan to meet the deadline set by the Government of the end of last month. If past performance is any guide, they are unlikely to do so for at least another couple of years.

Without such a plan, the government requires all applications for 'sustainable' development to be approved, potentially giving developers even more opportunities to further deface our countryside and towns.

The next district council elections are not due to be held until May next year. It is terrifying to think in the meantime what further damage our elected representatives will be able to permit.