(file photo) The city of Yorkville is eying stricter solar farm decommission plan requirements. The area has more than half-a-dozen solar farm projects in various stages. (Photo Provided by the City of Yorkville)
With more than half a dozen solar farm projects in consideration for the Yorkville area, the city is looking to adopt stronger decommissioning rules to better ensure panels are removed and the land restored after the owners’ leases end.
Projects like the 20-acre, 5-megawatt Beecher Road Solar LLC solar farm in Yorkville must contractually decommission the facility within six months after the solar facility stops being operational. That project will include 11,201 solar panels.
Most negotiated solar farm leases are for 20-year terms, with the possibility for extensions leading up to 40 years.
The decommissioning and land restoration process can be quite expensive and intensive, including underground work.
A 5-megawatt solar facility can cost between $60,000 and $120,000 to decommission, including restoring the environmental quality of the site, according to The Solar Recycling Company.
To better eliminate the risk of the price tag falling on the city, Yorkville is considering amending its city ordinance. The amendment ensures the developers have 120% of the funding needed to decommission throughout the duration of the solar project.
Financial assurance for the solar farm can be provided in the form of a performance bond, surety bond, or letter of credit. The financial assurance to decommission the solar farm must “remain in effect for the life of the project until decommissioning has been completed,” according to city documents.
“The proposed revisions are intended to ensure that adequate financial security is continuously maintained to guarantee the removal of solar facilities and restoration of the site should the project be abandoned or cease operations,” Krysti Barksdale-Noble, community development director, said in city documents.
Yorkville City Hall building at 651 Prairie Pointe Drive. (Mark Foster)
If a solar farm operator fails to maintain the 120% financial assurance, the city will pursue the “immediate decommissioning of the solar farm.”
The proposal will be discussed at the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission meeting on Aug. 12 and likely during the Aug. 25 City Council meeting.
Prior to approval, developers will be required to submit to the city a complete decommissioning plan containing financial assurance.
Any non-functioning solar panels must be decommissioned within 30 days unless the operator demonstrates to the city that repair operations are underway.
According to the ordinance, the property must undergo environmental restoration that ensures the ground is returned to its “prior condition.”
The decommissioning plan must include “provisions for the restoration of the natural soil and vegetation.” It must also contain procedures for the removal of structures, debris, and cabling, including underground materials.
The city requires solar farm operators to update decommissioning costs every three years in reports certified by a professional engineer.
In addition to the 20-acre Beecher Road Solar LLC solar farm, several other projects are in various stages of development across the city.
The Beecher Road Solar LLC solar farm is set for a site north of Corneils Road, west of Beecher Road, and east of Illinois Route 47.
That project is an extension of the city-approved 35-acre Corneils Road Solar project by developers Nexamp, LLC, which is directly east of the site of the 540-acre Project Steel data center.
Another project is the 26-acre, 5-megawatt Bristol Ridge 105 Solar Farm, by developers Turning Point Energy, LLC. The solar farm will feature 14,000 solar panels. The site is located east of Cannonball Trail and north of the BNSF Railroad. The project is currently projected to be finished by October 2027.
The city previously approved the 23-acre, 5-megawatt Nexamp Solar Farm, by Yorkville Renewables, LLC, near the southwest corner of Galena Road and Route 47.
The city has not said how the new ordinance will affect solar farm projects just outside city limits, but within the city’s 1.5-mile planning boundary. The city can object to the county on any projects in that range, as well as make rule suggestions, or enter pre-annexation agreements with the developers.
Just outside the city is the USA Energy Independence solar farm, which is within the city’s 1.5-mile planning boundary. The 37-acre site is located north of Corneils Road and east of Illinois Route 47.
Also just outside city limits is the 93.4-acre solar farm project by developers Ament Road Solar, LLC. The site is south of Ament Road, west of Route 47, and two miles from the Windett Ridge subdivision.
Joey Weslo is a reporter for Shaw Local News Network

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