MOUNT VERNON — Utility-scale solar is on the horizon for Knox County, but there are still a lot of details to work out before it becomes a reality.
It hinges in part on how the county commissioners respond to Ohio Senate Bill 52.
SB 52 gives communities more local control over the development of solar and wind projects. At the same time, it sets up a potential conflict with landowner rights.
The bill applies to wind and solar facilities 50 megawatts or larger. Before its passage, the Ohio Power Siting Board (OPSB) had sole oversight and authority over energy generation facilities.
SB 52 took effect on Oct. 21, 2021. It requires the county commissioners to approve a project before a developer submits an application to the OPSB. It also provides local representation on the siting board when the application comes before the OPSB.
Under the bill, commissioners have two options:
• Designate all or part of the unincorporated area of the county as a restricted area where construction of a wind or solar farm is prohibited. A resolution creating a restricted area(s) is subject to referendum where voters approve or reject the resolution.
• Approve projects on a case-by-case basis. After a public meeting where the project is described, the commissioners can deny, modify the footprint, or take no action on the project. If the commissioners take no action, the solar company can proceed to apply to the OPSB.
“Our answer has been that right now, we are not open to entertaining wind,” Knox County Commissioner Teresa Bemiller said. “We will probably prohibit that, but we are open to solar on a case-by-case basis.
“I do not typically like to step on property rights, but we would be looking at the effect it has on neighbors in terms of landscape, easements, and things like that.”
“From our initial education, it seems like there are only two or three areas of the county that seem appropriate for solar panels,” Commissioner Thom Collier said. “That has to do with getting on the grid; specific areas are more naturally apt to see solar.
“We are making sure they are not looking at prime farmland,” he added.
Commissioner Bill Pursel noted that power companies are redoing power lines in Jefferson and Brown townships.
“I would assume that would open up more grid area for solar in that area,” he said.
To get public input about wind and solar, the commissioners scheduled a meeting for Tuesday, May 24, at 10:30 a.m. in the Knox Memorial, 112 E. High St.
“The most important thing for people to know is this is not about making any decision about any project. It’s just to put out information about solar,” Bemiller said of the meeting.
“The whole idea is to let people give their input,” Pursel added.
While SB 52 gives communities more local control and additional representation, projects that have reached a certain point in the process are grandfathered in and are exempt from commissioners’ approval. Tomorrow Knox Pages takes a look at the solar developers interested in Knox County and what it means to be grandfathered in.
