500 Farmers Sue Green Gen Cymru Over Pylon Access
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- 500 Welsh farmers have filed a High Court claim alleging Green Gen Cymru unlawfully entered private land, intimidated landowners, and breached biosecurity, risking livestock disease spread.
- Green Gen Cymru is planning three pylon routes across Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, and Powys to connect offshore windfarms, part of a 125-mile (200km) infrastructure project for Wales’s energy grid.
- Justice for Wales and CPRW jointly brought the legal challenge, emphasizing they oppose not renewable energy but the company’s conduct and lack of consent in accessing farmland.
- Natalie Barstow, the lead claimant, alleges company agents trespassed through a protected otter habitat, captured on wildlife cameras, heightening environmental concerns.
- Section 172 notices and compulsory purchase orders are being legally challenged over whether they lawfully permit utility companies to access and acquire private land without consent.
- Jonty Colchester, CPRW chair, frames the hearing as a pivotal moment for rural accountability, demanding transparency in large-scale energy decisions affecting Welsh communities.
Why it matters: The case could redefine landowner rights in Wales by challenging legal tools that let energy firms seize private property for public-interest projects. If farmers succeed, utility developers may face stricter consent requirements, slowing renewable rollouts but empowering rural communities with greater leverage and voice in infrastructure planning.
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