Proposed revisions to Linn County’s utility-scale solar ordinance are now one step closer to approval – but the revisions have already been further revised, with even more changes likely before the proposal is finally approved. After a two-hour public hearing at the Jean Oxley Public Service Center Tuesday that included input from 21 commenters, the […]
Proposed revisions to Linn County’s utility-scale solar ordinance are now one step closer to approval – but the revisions have already been further revised, with even more changes likely before the proposal is finally approved.
After a two-hour public hearing at the Jean Oxley Public Service Center Tuesday that included input from 21 commenters, the county’s board of supervisors approved the first reading of the proposed ordinance revisions.
The process of revising the 50-page ordinance was launched in the wake of officials’ extensive review – and eventual approval – of three utility-scale solar projects, including the
Coggon Solar project and the
Duane Arnold Solar I and II projects, all located in Linn County.
In the wake of those approvals, the board of supervisors implemented a moratorium in October 2022 on consideration of new utility-scale solar projects in Linn County, while four county-appointed committees examined issues raised in the contentious approval processes and drafted reports suggesting changes in county solar policies.
Those committees included:
- Good Neighbor Practices, which discussed setbacks and screening;
- Battery Energy Storage Systems, which discussed placement and safety considerations;
- Balancing Agriculture and Solar, which discussed vegetation requirements and agrivoltaic considerations; and
- Lifecycle Costs, which discussed decommissioning plan requirements and considerations, operation and maintenance plan requirements and considerations.
The committees met several times in the first half of 2023 and forwarded reports to Linn County Planning & Development staff, which then used statements from the committees, board of supervisors, and the public to draft the proposed ordinance changes.
Those changes address a host of issues ranging from setbacks from neighboring properties to panel heights, viewshed screenings, impacts on agriculture, vegetative plantings and soil protection, development standards, decommissioning procedures, and many more.
Board of supervisors chair Louie Zumbach acknowledged that despite months of work, the ordinance revisions remain somewhat divisive.
“We've had a lot of communication from both sides,” Mr. Zumbach said. “If nobody's (totally) happy, we must be on the right path.”
However, in response to criticisms that the new policies are overly restrictive and could serve as a “poison pill” for future solar developments, Planning and Zoning director Charlie Nichols said the revisions simply provide more specific and detailed regulations for potential developers.
“This is not meant to scare off projects,” Mr. Nichols said. “It was meant to encourage practices we want to see.”
The revisions approved Tuesday include three main changes to the county’s solar ordinance, as suggested during a Linn County Planning Commission meeting in August – specifying that site operators be responsible for cleanup of any storm damage, that land tenants be notified of any zoning changes, and that the term “agrivoltaics” be more specifically defined as “the practice of combining solar energy generation with agricultural activities on the same land parcel.”
Several other revisions were suggested at Tuesday’s meeting, ranging from wildlife habitat policies to minimum solar panel heights and setbacks from neighboring properties.
Those suggestions will be incorporated into the proposed ordinance revisions and considered by the board at the second and third readings, slated for 10 a.m. meetings Sept. 13 and Sept. 10.
The board also reviewed another proposed addition to the county’s solar project evaluation process – a solar scorecard, under which proposed developers could earn points for various criteria such as planting local seed mixes, siting projects on land with lower Corn Suitability Rating (CSR) metrics, minimizing site grading during construction and providing exceptional Good Neighbor practices through compensation or other methods.
If the scorecard is implemented, a minimum score of 100 will be required for a utility-scale solar project to receive approval.
Supervisors Ben Rogers and Kirstin Running-Marquardt both said they were in favor of the scorecard concept, but Mr. Rogers said he found “pain points” with the portions governing site grading and CSR restrictions.
“If a farmer has high CSR (land) and they want to use that as leverage with whoever making them an offer, they can do so,” he said. “Certainly a landowner with high CSR land could use that as a negotiating tactic.”
Ms. Running-Marquardt equated the solar scorecard with the agricultural Land Evaluation and SIte Assessment (LESA) system used to govern other developments in Linn County, but said she felt the solar scorecard provides more flexibility.
“I appreciate the balance that you've struck with that,” she said.
The
proposed ordinance changes and the
solar scorecard are both posted to Linn County’s website.
