06/10/2022
Located near Gien (Loiret), TotalEnergies officially opened the La Métairie solar power plant on 10 June 2022. With its 126,000 panels spread over 75 hectares and a capacity of 55 megawatts-peak (MWp), the site will generate electricity for 38,000 people, while also serving as a showcase site for the preservation of biodiversity.
Including the creation of hedges and ponds, eco-grazing or roosting sites for bats and amphibians, from its design to its operational management, the La Métairie solar power plant is a concrete example of the various measures we are implementing to meet the challenge of preserving biodiversity.
Our biodiversity conservation objectives for the La Métairie site
The biodiversity action plan (BAP) for La Métairie covers the design, construction and operational phases of the site. It is organised according to the Avoid, Reduce and Compensate (ARC) approach, and makes it possible to identify challenges and opportunities in terms of biodiversity in order to introduce the necessary management and monitoring measures. The main measures and the results achieved to date include:
- avoidance, in particular through the choice of location for the site - on former agricultural land - which made it possible to reduce development in wooded areas. Only a small area (around 18.78 hectares) had to be cleared of undergrowth and/or vegetation. Wetlands (ponds and pools) have been entirely avoided;
- mitigation through various measures, such as the use of wide-mesh wire fencing to maintain ecological connectivity for small wildlife, or the use of light, targeted eco-grazing on the site to maintain a non-woody grassland environment;
- the restoration and enhancement of environments, through the creation of several additional wetlands and micro-habitats in order to increase the numbers of reptiles and small mammals. Bat sanctuaries have also been created;
- protection, with several targeted off-site areas under study, in partnership with local farmers and forest owners;
- forestry compensation by means of a compulsory financial contribution to the national forestry fund, paid as part of the programme to offset forestry losses;
- awareness-building and education, with the main measures displayed at the entrance to the site, which forms part of a wider local educational trail, to raise awareness among local residents and school groups of biodiversity management at photovoltaic power plants.
Measures to avoid, protect and enhance biodiversity have been incorporated into the La Métairie site from the design stage onwards. This integrated approach makes it possible to enhance and maintain areas of biodiversity in the non-industrially developed areas of the site for its entire lifespan.