BAY MINETTE, Ala. (WALA) – Residents opposed to the development of large solar sites packed the Baldwin County Commission chamber Tuesday, demanding a halt to new solar development. They left without an answer.
The fight to keep solar out of north Baldwin County continued during the public comment section of the commission meeting. The push intensified after two more proposed solar farm sites were discovered in the Tensaw and Lottie areas. The concerns are the same as those with the current proposed Silicon Ranch project in the Stockton area.
“I want to encourage you to take…do the moratorium and take a look at the repercussions of what would happen,” one speaker said.
“There’s a real sense of urgency for this,” another said.
“What if there’s noncompliance? What if there’s a permit issue?” a third asked.
Residents seek time for environmental review
Those opposing solar development believe a moratorium could help answer their questions. The extra time would allow the county to hire an outside engineering firm to look at potential environmental conflicts and for county leaders to create guidelines for future development.
John Murphy, a Stockton resident who has helped spearhead the effort to slow down site development, said residents want answers soon.
“We want an answer, and something resolved as soon as possible because we are concerned about time and we’re concerned about everything that’s going on up there,” Murphy said. “We know that Silicon Ranch and these other ones that are trying to put in these solar sites, eleven thousand acres of solar sites, it’s not good for us.”
Diana Well Dean of River House Workshop said a closer look at the projects would be worthwhile.
“If they could do that, I think it would be…I mean, how’s it going to hurt? If they come up with the idea that it’s a great idea, at least they will have considered it,” Dean said.
Commissioners say they must follow legal process
Commissioners said they cannot act in haste.
“You have my word and I believe the word of everybody up here that we do not want this, and we are not incentivizing anything and we’re doing everything we can by what’s called the law,” Baldwin County Commissioner Billie Jo Underwood said.
Commission Chairman Jeb Ball said the commission is taking steps to ensure any action is legally sound.
“We have asked our attorney to do the due diligence on behalf of the Baldwin County Commission to do what any good steward would do before you make a knee jerk decision that could wind up in frivolous lawsuits that would cost the taxpayers’ dollars,” Ball said. “So, we asked our attorney to seek an AG’s opinion for it.”
The commission passed a resolution at the meeting to send a letter to Attorney General Steve Marshall’s office to get that opinion. No word on how long that will take. Silicon Ranch has yet to file any applications or other paperwork to move forward with the Stockton project.
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