Solar advocates ask Delaware County commissioners to change solar ordinance setbacks

As the local plan commission prepares to once again consider a change to an ordinance governing solar energy projects on farm ground in Delaware County, solar advocates are asking county commissioners to open up a second topic for changes – setbacks.  IPR’s Stephanie Wiechmann reports.

At a contentious three-hour meeting in November, the Delaware County-Muncie Metropolitan Plan Commission increased the setback for non-participating properties with homes on them from 200 to 500 feet.  That setback starts at the property line.  And solar advocates tell county commissioners this week that the provision will drastically limit the number of panels that can be put on participating land.

Robert Koester heads the Center for Energy Research/Education/Service at Ball State University.

“Property line setbacks instead of line-of-sight dwelling setbacks is a bad neighbor policy, because it limits the productive use of adjacent land.”

Read More: Delaware County Council considers taking away solar project tax abatements

Muncie state representative Sue Errington says the 500-foot setback is much higher than the state recommends in a bill passed in 2022.

“If there is a dwelling on a neighboring property, the state calls for the distance to be 250-feet from the outer edge of the solar array to the nearest point of the outer wall of the dwelling.

But county commissioner James King pointed out to Errington that that bill created voluntary recommendations, not requirements that would supersede county law.

“Everything that you’re telling us, the state could have created a bill – what each county could have had to go by.  Instead, you made recommendations for the local officials to create their own ordinances, correct?”

In 2023, more than 50 counties had solar ordinances on their books.  A Purdue University study in 2022 showed none of them meet all the criteria in the voluntary state guidelines.

Read More: Delaware County commissioners change solar ordinance to adjust maximum acreage

On December 13, the plan commission will consider a commissioner recommendation to change the maximum amount of farmland that solar panels can take up.  John Brooke, the commission’s attorney, says either the plan commission or county commissioners could open up talk about changing setbacks – but not until or after that meeting.

Stephanie Wiechmann is our Managing Editor and “All Things Considered” Host.  Contact her at slwiechmann@bsu.edu.