The Marshall County Plan Commission wants more time to consider solar energy farms in the county and towards that end voted 5-1 to impose a one-year moratorium on the aspect of those farms most concerning to those opposed — the storage batteries that go along with the “solar farms”.
Marshall County Plan Director Ty Adley walked the board through a vast amount of information he had compiled regarding the state code on such solar facilities and compared them to the current ordinance on the books in Marshall County.
After hearing the similarities, differences, and contradictions in the Indiana Code members of the county wanted to take a more in-depth look and gain legal advice on the matter to, as Adley put in his recommendations, “…better protect Marshall County and its citizens as it relates to public health and safety.”
That is what led to the moratorium.
At the heart of the concern by county citizens is the types of storage batteries the facilities use to store the energy collected from solar panels. One of those citizens, Deb VanDeMark, presented the commission with research that she has done with a particular concern towards “lithium-ion” batteries used by many facilities that have failed catastrophically in locations around the country.
Adley went through a very thorough comparison of state code and local ordinance pointing out several points of concern.
One was the apparent contradiction of one section of Indiana code, 22-14-8, that states in one part that permits for solar farms are to be issued by the Department of Homeland Security which has the “sole authority” to regulate such facilities and that local authorities could not require further approval, permits, consent, fees, or regulate ownership or operation.
Later in the same section of the code, it states that the DHS regulations do not affect local units exercising zoning or land use restrictions.
Adley suggested that some guidance from the Commission’s legal counsel would be helpful on what authority the county has.
Adley went on to compare the state code with Marshall County’s current ordinance and while the county requirements in most cases are more restrictive, there were several restrictions — for glare, interference with radio, microwave, GPS, and radar, sound level limitations, and “Force Majeure” (acts of God) events — that were not in the Marshall County ordinance.
Members of the Commission questioned whether the extra restrictions in state code would automatically apply to Marshall County to which Adley replied that, once again, legal counsel should be sought for clarification.
He went on to say that there had been no cases brought before the Indiana Court of Appeals or the Indiana Supreme Court regarding the regulation of solar farms saying that there were, in essence, 92 interpretations of the law, one for each county.
He said until there was a court decision on just what “reasonable restrictions” are they would remain undefined.
Adley recommended the moratorium for the county to look further into what other similar counties in the state have done about regulation and to seek advice from legal counsel on how the county should move forward.
Just who will be left with the bill in case of decommissioning of the structures was also at the top of concerns for the Plan Commission members.
Along with the moratorium, board members tasked Adley with once again compiling more information in the areas of concern and report back to them as soon as possible.
Adley will be drafting the wording of the moratorium and presenting the ordinance for formal adoption by the Plan Commission. It will then go to the Marshall County Commissioners for final consideration and adoption.
