Cowfold farmer fears plans for 'royal woodland' will be wrecked by Rampion wind farm

That’s the fear of landowner Ralph Dickson who has spent the past 18 months planning to plant thousands of trees on 70 acres of his land at Ridgelands Farm in Kent Street, Cowfold, as part of the Queen’s Green Canopy project to mark the late monarch’s Platinum Jubilee.

But the farmland has been chosen by Rampion 2 offshore wind farm as an underground cabling route for a new onshore electricity substation which would enable its connection to the national electricity network.

"The Rampion wind farm cable route will totally destroy the project,” said Ralph.”I’ve been in communication with them and made it clear through my agent that there is no compromise.

"We have told them that they are not going across the land. There is no negotiation to be done. If the Queen’s Canopy is going to be there, their cables are not going through.

"The planting of the wood is down to me. I am not going to share my wood with Rampion. This is an almost sacred project and I am not sharing it with them.”

He said he had never met Rampion management at the Kent Street site. “I made my plans very clear in writing to Rampion well in advance of the decision to site the sub station at Oakendene (the name now chosen by Rampion for the Kent Street site).”

"In correspondence as far back as November 2021 I made it clear that the whole area would be planted with trees. In May 2022 I made it clear there is no possibility to disturb this land and asked them to show respect for the project.”

Ralph – who has farmed the Cowfold land and other land at Wiston for nearly 40 years – said he was the first person in the south east to be approved by the Woodland Trust for the Queen’s Green Canopy – a project which urged people to plant native trees to create a 'special gift' to mark the Queen’s 70 year reign.

Ralph said he hoped to start planting this winter. “Once the woodland is down it can’t be destroyed for 100 years,” he said. “It will be a nature reserve. I have put ponds in and it is very much a nature reserve environment which I have worked on for a good many years.”

Rampion is currently undertaking a public consultation on its proposals. "I want to appeal to the public to respond to the consultation,” said Ralph. See https://rampion2.com/consultation-2022/

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A spokesperson from the Rampion 2 Offshore Wind Farm team said: “We have met with Mr Dickson, and have asked him to share his planting plans, so that we can work together to achieve the best way forward.

"We are working with hundreds of land owners along the proposed route, from Climping to Cowfold, to create the best possible cable route that has the least impact on the environment and communities along the way.

“Our consultation on the cable route is open until November 29 and we are holding several drop-in events in November in West Sussex where people can come and see our plans and meet the team.

"All details and the opportunity to feedback is also available online at www.rampion2.com”