Gage County Planning Commission continues discussion of solar energy

BEATRICE – The Gage County Planning and Zoning Commission continues to pour over proposed regulations for commercial solar energy installations, prior to the proposed rules being sent on to the Gage County Board, for consideration.
Tuesday night, commission member Terry Acton suggested a one-mile, rather than half-mile setback requirement from the Homestead National Historical Park, churches or recreational areas. Acton and Commission Chairman Jeff Argo discussed that issue.
"That would protect those areas, and it ain't that big of an area that would be unavailable for them....(Argo)..."but as soon as you start stretching them out a mile, then it makes it hard for everything to come in for anything at all. Look what we did with wind towers...we've got the high regs...for setbacks, and that takes everything out. If you wanted something in the south end, we're gonna eliminate things just like we did with wind regs in the north end...(Acton)..."Homestead National Historical Park is not down in the south end...there's some NRD dams"..(Argo)..."I understand what you're saying Terry, but you've got to remember, we're doing the whole county....not just north county, south county."
Acton was critical of large solar companies coming into the area, pushing green energy. "Why are they here....what do they want? What do they don't have, what is it? It's land, isn't it. They want your land...they want to rent your land...and they're shaking hands with big government to make money on a renewable energy push. It's basically all we've got left....it's your independence."
Acton questioned why, quote, “we need to bulldoze a path for big green energy when we’ve got constraints for big livestock.” "The bigger you are, the tougher it is for you to get in. Every increment in livestock, there's bigger setbacks."
Commission members also discussed screening of solar sites with trees, and requirements to maintain that screening. One area that drew considerable discussion Tuesday night is whether solar energy companies wanting to establish a project should be required to do a four-season study on noise. Commission member Dennis Rosene noted a wider view should be taken of whether noise from an operation would even be a significant problem.
"Wind generation has more noise to consider, than solar has to consider. I don't think the solar is of that magnitude to justify a four-season study....I just don't."
The planning commission is now proposing four, instead of three classifications of solar energy installations…..small residential, class 2 commercial, class 3 commercial and a new…..class 4 commercial.
The largest category would be for operations greater than two megawatts…and would require a minimum of 20 acres. Those operations would have a half-mile setback from non-participating landowner property lines…a three-quarter mile setback from the Homestead National Historical Park, schools, churches and NRD rec areas…and a half-mile setback from platted subdivisions and villages that do not have zoning.
The commission will meet again on the revisions before deciding whether to forward them to the Gage County Board.