Wright County Board passes emergency moratorium on solar energy farms

By Brenda Erdahl

A proposed emergency moratorium on solar energy farms in Wright County prompted good discussion last week at a public hearing on the matter. The hearing took place during the regular Wright County Board Meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 26. After listening to arguments from residents, township officials and representatives from IPS Solar and Minnesota Native Landscapes, both for and against such action, the commissioners ultimately approved the moratorium which will put a halt to any solar projects in the county that could last up to a year.

Commissioner Darek Vetsch assured those in attendance that Wright County is not against solar energy, instead the moratorium is about protecting taxpayers.

“The conversation here is not as a play against solar energy, but to make sure we are protecting Wright County taxpayers from harm down the road,” he said.

Commissioner Christine Husom pointed out that Wright County is one of the top solar producers in the state and one of the top tax collectors for production tax. The county currently has 15 to 20 solar sites and has worked with five to 10 different developers over the years.

“We’re hearing good stories, and real concerns,” Husom said after the hearing, Tuesday. “We’re not trying to pick on anyone.”

Commissioners said the purpose of the moratorium is to take a closer look at an ordinance that was put in place five plus years ago and may no longer afford Wright County residents the protection they deserve. The moratorium is in response to recent development pressure as well as comments received from the community, the townships, and the cities.

Some concerns brought up Tuesday include weeds allowed to grow unchecked around solar structures, water runoff problems and cost for removal of the solar structures when the time comes. Commissioners noted that some companies may be better to work with than others when it comes to these issues.

Arguing against a moratorium were representatives from IPS Solar and local contractors who have come to depend on the solar industry at a time when the economy is insecure. Evan Carlson of IPS Solar said a moratorium now would set back progress on a new project IPS has in the works south of Howard Lake. Carlson stated he was part of the committee that put the original ordinance together, and in his opinion, it is already enormously restrictive. He said the committee he was on consisted of township members, members of the planning commissions and members of the county board. For over a year they worked to come up with the current ordinance and a great deal of care was put into it, he said. The result for IPS, was a 1 mega watt project on Harlan Anderson’s property near Cokato. Anderson was also in attendance to attest to the good experience he has had working with IPS.

Carlson said IPS hasn’t been in the county since the Anderson project and now they have found a site for another project that satisfies the current ordinance, and they would like to follow through with it. With all the restrictions already in place, Carlson said finding a suitable location for another solar project was a little like a scavenger hunt and he asked commissioners to have sympathy on developers who have pending applications.

Commissioners said the moratorium will put a stop to all projects in the works that don’t have a developer agreement finalized.

Jake Hay is an independent contractor for IPS who lives in South Haven. He implored commissioners to reconsider a moratorium as it would negatively affect his livelihood and slow solar growth. Being a resident of Wright County for 34 years, he said he always takes care of the landowners he works with and has had no complaints. He suggested issues should be handled by townships instead of by a blanket, county-wide moratorium.

Rob Schultz of Minnesota Native Landscapes applauded IPS’s use of local contractors with their projects which promotes local jobs. He also talked about how landscaping around solar sites can promote wildlife and be used for grazing in some cases.

Arguing for a moratorium was Buffalo Township resident Terry Weese and Monticello Township resident Kevin Yonak. Weese said Buffalo Township was the site of the first solar farm in the county and they have had trouble with the solar company not following through on promises and not producing energy like they claimed they would. Yonak commented “the floodgates are opening, we’re getting too much of this development and that is going to affect our property taxes.”

Other residents argued both for and against solar farms. Some said the land should be used for agriculture or housing, others agreed with Anderson who said the solar farm on his property allows him to continue a farming tradition his family has enjoyed for 150 years.

“These solar farms are built with the idea that in 20 or 25 years they have to come and take them out . . . in 25 years I’ll let my grandsons’ plant crops on my land again,” Anderson said.

Husom said the moratorium won’t necessarily be in effect for an entire year. Details could be ironed out in a more, timely manner, she said.

Sean Riley, Wright County Zoning Administrator went on record to say, “I think the good news is we overall do have a good product in our zoning ordinance. We do have 15 to 20 sites in the county and I think most of them have been done well, so we have some experience, but as we’re hearing today, we have debate on vegetative cover, land alteration, wetlands, drainage. The land-use is 5 to 6 years old, there’s moving parts to it. If we need to relook at the details and finetune things, we will put resources and effort into doing that.”