Yesterday's decision by the Planning Inspectorate for the UK's largest solar farm is a positive step forward in the UK's move to low-carbon energy.  

The decision comes at time when cleaner air and skies are noticeable in every town and city due to the Covid-19 pandemic. As the world begins to think about returning to some form of normality it is important that we don't undo this positive change. 

Within our towns and cities pavements have been widened and new cycle lanes created to allow more sustainable modes of transport. 

Our energy network is responding too, with nearly 45% of all energy production to come from renewable sources in Q1 2020. Coal has not contributed to the UK's power supply for 117 days.

This is a positive step forward and highlights that there can be a more substantial move towards low carbon energy. But for this to be truly successful there needs to be legislative change. 

The thresholds and definitions for NSIP applications needs to be reviewed to allow essential supporting infrastructure to be determined at the local level, speeding delivery and improving resilience across the national grid.

The forthcoming changes for electrical battery storage are a welcome change and will help to deliver more renewable energy projects. 

But with larger schemes having lower impacts due to the technologies involved, more could be done to ensure a successful and long-term green recovery.