A solar farm has been approved for farmland near a stately home for a “temporary” period of 50 years.
The site, near Thornton in Buckinghamshire, is expected to generate almost 50MW of electricity, enough to power 15,000 houses.
Opponents said it would increase flood risk and damage the landscape.
However, the developer said the facility would not have a significant visual impact and would help meet growing demand for electricity.
The solar farm, proposed by Liverpool-based Crosshouse Solar, will cover about 88 hectares (217 acres) of farmland close to Thornton Hall, which is near Buckingham.
One councillor at a planning committee meeting on Wednesday, external described the 50-year lifespan as “not very temporary in my book”.
Nick Beddoe, the developer’s agent, told the committee: “It increases our generation capacity at a time when demand is set to at least double by 2050, and it generates business rates and economic activity during the construction and operational phases.”
But Caroline Moore, who lives in a lodge on the drive up to the hall, said: “This proposal puts hundreds or even thousands of panels within 300 metres of Thornton Hall.
“All of us in Thornton are in no doubt that a solar installation of this size and duration would completely change the character of an unspoiled agricultural area, surrounded by cultural lanes and farms, and with public rights of way through it and by it.”