Two solar energy companies have publicized maps of their proposed solar energy districts as part of applications to Warren County.
The “solar energy overlay districts,” as the county …
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Two solar energy companies have publicized maps of their proposed solar energy districts as part of applications to Warren County.
The “solar energy overlay districts,” as the county calls them, would encompass a combined 6,225 acres of farmland and wooded areas in northern Warren County. Around 50 property owners signed agreements with the companies to lease land for the solar districts, according applications from developers Invenergy and Ranger Power.
Applications for the solar districts are the next step toward construction of fields of solar panels which could generate the equivalent to thousands of homes-worth of power. The Warren County planning and zoning board will consider the applications during two hearings on November 19.
The first hearing at 6 p.m. is the larger of the two proposals, submitted by developer Invenergy under subsidiary name Split Rail Solar Energy.
The proposed area for Invenergy’s solar farm is 4,435 acres, largely located between Highway A and Highway W. The electrical capacity of the solar farm would be rated at 300 megawatts. According to the Solar Energy Industries Association, 1 megawatt is enough to power more than 100 Missouri homes.
The solar district is irregularly shaped, made of more than 30 interconnected pieces of property. “Islands” or “peninsulas” of excluded property in the district area show where either Invenergy or the property owners were uninterested in developing.
The hearing for the smaller solar district, submitted by Ranger Power through subsidiary company Blue Bird Solar, is scheduled for 8 p.m. Nov. 19. The proposed 1,790-acre district would be located west of Highway 47 and just south of the Lincoln County border.
Ranger’s district is relatively compact compared to Invenergy’s, created through leasing agreements with around 20 landowners. Ranger estimates the solar district would have an electrical capacity of about 139 megawatts.
Each of the companies paid a $25,000 deposit for the cost of processing and evaluating their solar district applications, according to the Warren County planning and zoning office.
Both solar districts would be required to have fencing surrounding their entire boundary, as well as vegetative screening wherever the boundary comes close to a public road or a residence.
Whatever finding the planning and zoning board makes would be delivered to the Warren County Commission for a final decision. If the commission approves the boundaries for one or both solar districts, the next step for the companies would be to get operating permits from the county. Those permits would include an annual fee of $2,250 per megawatt capacity.
Combined, those fees would bring in almost $1 million per year, which the county commission has promised to divide among local public services such as schools and emergency response agencies.
