The Warren County Commission has selected an engineering firm to review plans and monitor construction of large commercial solar farms in the county.

Andrews Engineering will act as the county’s representative to assess building plans submitted by two solar farm companies, checking to confirm that plans for the sprawling developments comply with county ordinance. The county last year set out requirements for things like setbacks, vegetative screens, fencing, and water runoff on commercial solar farms.

Developer Ranger Power earlier this year submitted plans for an 1,800-acre solar farm on Highway 47 near the Lincoln County border. Presiding Commissioner Joe Gildehaus said those plans are now under review by Andrews Engineering.

The county is also making arrangements to have Andrews review plans for another, 4,400-acre development by Invenergy near Highway A and Highway W, Gildehaus said.

Once the plan reviews are completed  and any issues are addressed, the companies can proceed with construction. When they do, Andrews Engineering will monitor the construction work to ensure that what’s being built matches the plans. Andrews will also provide annual inspections of the solar farms, and more frequent inspection as-needed, to ensure continued compliance with county ordinance.

“Andrews will review each commercial solar farm project’s operating permit application, perform inspections of the construction to verify that it conforms to the operating permit and minimizes impacts to Warren County’s infrastructure and natural resources, and conduct annual inspections,” the company said in a press release.

Andrews Engineering is a multi-state firm with an office in Warrenton. Engineer Karl Finke is the head of the local office, which provides engineering for various commercial and industrial projects, the company said.

The contract with Andrews is for a one-year period, with automatic yearly renewal unless the contract is canceled.

Commissioner Gildehaus said Andrews was selected from four engineering firms under consideration.

“(Andrews) having a local office made a difference. And they have some experience with these types of projects over the years. That definitely helped,” Gildehaus commented.

Northern District Commissioner Matt Flake added that the firm’s experience with hydrological studies was important to him, along with their local presence.

The three other engineering firms that submitted qualifications for the work were Lewis-Bade in Warrenton, George Butler & Associates out of O’Fallon, and Azimuth Energy in St. Louis.

The Warren County Commission put rules in place last year requiring proposed solar farms to have features that will reduce potential nuisances for neighbors. To ensure those rules are upheld, the commission is requiring commercial solar farms to apply for an annual operating permit, which can be denied if an engineer’s inspection finds compliance issues that aren’t being corrected. 

The operating permit includes a hefty application fee, part of which will be used to pay for the county’s contracted engineer.