Many of you may have seen the proposed solar farm near Ponthir.
This project, if approved, would span land across Monmouthshire, Torfaen and Newport, and see over 120 hectares of land used in the process.
Rest assured, I have raised my concerns with the Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Planning.
I asked the Welsh Government for a further assessment on the environmental and agricultural impacts of building solar farms, particularly the one near Ponthir. I will of course continue to keep a close eye on this project and will always be happy to hear concerns that you may have on the matter.
Of course, I firmly believe that we need to move towards more renewable energy sources, however, this must be done in a pragmatic way and not come at the expense of the environment nor our food system.
There is an estimated 300 acres of useable farmland being put at risk as a result of this proposal, which would have a profound impact on our ability to produce food.
While green energy is the future of both our economy and infrastructure, we cannot let dogma get in the way of common sense.
Some of you may have seen that the Secretary of State for Energy and Security issued an immediate ban on the drilling of new North Sea oil, going against official advice.
The fact is that we will continue to need oil over the coming years as we move towards a greater reliance on renewable energy sources.
Decisions like this do nothing but increase our dependency on imported oil.
I want to make it clear that the Welsh Conservatives have a plan to invest in our renewable energy in a sensible way.
Our last manifesto pledged £150 million in a Wales Marine Energy Investment Fund to kickstart a green revolution.
Wales is in a great place to take advantage of the prospects and future that green energy can bring. What we need is a Government willing to seize this opportunity and ensure that infrastructure projects are built in a sensible and common-sense way.
Peter Fox MS - Monmouth
