Charles Town District county commission candidates on solar farms - spiritofjefferson

Charles Town District county commission candidates on solar farms | News | spiritofjefferson.com

SPIRIT: What is your overall position on industrial-scale solar energy facilities operating in Jefferson County?

Jack Hefestay: As a lifelong, liberty-minded constitutional and fiscal conservative, I have been an advocate of an individual’s property rights. However, as my experience and interface has matured, I am convinced that property-owner rights should be coupled with property-owner responsibilities. Solar compounds have not been good neighbors to adjacent property owners. This is shameful.

Solar compounds/industrial facilities initially appeared to be a positive thing for the county (and the notorious elusive power grid) by helping some farmers/landowners with some legacy financial difficulties—by leasing or selling their property to solar compound developers—the harsh reality of the solar compound project has hit the county hard. Solar compounds have indicated they would be low impact to communities and nearly invisible. The visuals of the operational solar compound is chilling. Adjacent property values have plummeted. This is a tragedy for neighboring local residents. The solar compounds are an ugly scar on Jefferson County, Almost Heaven West Virginia. The damage to farmland and communities will never be reversed.

My overall position on these solar compound/industrial facilities is that they are an expensive and environmentally destructive failed experiment, and I will do all I can as a commissioner to assure no new solar compounds are brought into the county, and those that are here must be held to the strictest regulations/permits that allowed them to exist in the first place. (I fully recognize I would only be 20 percent of the voting body, but I will do what I can to fix or reverse this disaster.)

Jacob Harris: I have long said that I will support solar only under very specific circumstances and criteria. It is the same criteria I would require of any company wanting to do business in this county. They must operate within appropriately zoned areas; they must pay their taxes (no PILOT [tax relief] agreements); and they must bring in permanent jobs, not just temporary construction/set-up jobs, for our citizens.

Applying these criteria to organizations coming into the county ensures that they are a benefit to our community, not a detriment. In short, if solar would meet these criteria, then I will support, if not, then I will oppose.

James Walch: Like any type of development in Jefferson County, I believe that balance is key. Fundamentally, property rights are very important and if a farmer wants to sell his farm to an industrial solar company, that is largely his/her right. However, a balance in commercial, residential and solar development must be maintained to keep property values up and citizens happy. Green spaces are also key in keeping a community livable and desirable and must be preserved for the future of our residents and wildlife here in Jefferson County.

David Tabb: This will be a short answer. In part, I believe that two elected officials and one appointed official should not have control over industrial-scale business, ever. This should have been and still be voted on by the voters/taxpayers. The solar arrays already installed are not safe, and emergency services have not been notified of the safety protocol or trained to respond to any emergency with solar arrays.

Editor’s note: Tabb did not answer the two other sets of questions the Spirit sent for a response.

SPIRIT: What, if anything, should the Jefferson County Commission do now to address industrial solar facility projects developing in the county?

Jack Hefestay: The three current commissioners appear to be satisfied with things as they are. I do not expect them to do anything to rectify the situation. The two new commission appointees will be lovers of solar compounds—and you can count on it. This is bad news for the county.

The zoning ordinance that allowed solar compounds (solar text amendment) was reversed and then reinstated by the commission—more proof that they embrace solar compounds as is. It will not be removed unless the county elects commissioners who want it changed (removed).

The controversy ultimately is up to the voters and perhaps the fallout by a panel of three judges—voters may not get a choice. Sad. I would strongly favor the full repeal of the solar text amendment, and the implementation of stronger anti-solar zoning technical requirements in the 2045 Comprehensive Plan.

The 2035 Comprehensive Plan is being completely revised and replaced as the 2045 Comprehensive Plan. I would challenge any “sane” person to attempt to review the two plans and try to determine a direct “requirements trace” of what it was—to what it has become. Whereas the 2035 had clauses and conditions that could have stopped solar compounds or at least discouraged new applicants, the newly presented 2045 Comprehensive Plan does not appear to discourage wide-scale radical green energy development (or any other development at all). I am deeply concerned that the new plan essentially eliminates most zoning hurdles and will open the floodgates of solar compound developers as well as many other farmland destructive Green New Deal Projects (e.g., wind turbines).

The money is there to bring more unnecessary green energy projects to the county and only current zoning restrictions and several technical support projects (e.g., power stations, transmission lines, etc.) are limiting their advance. The 2045 Comprehensive Plan is scheduled for the commission’s approval in late 2024 or early 2025. I would recommend a delay in the approval plan, a complete public step-by-step walk through of the two documents and revisions (to the 2045 document) that would strengthen zoning requirements on any new or existing industrial facility—solar or other.

It would be nice to consider enacting a series of ordinances to correct known and identified problems with solar compounds. This could be folly as new ordinances against existing and legally approved projects will only open up a Pandora’s Box of costly (to the county) lawsuits by the developers, which will stretch our legal staff and eat our county’s limited funds. It is a massive challenge and should be worked carefully and cautiously. Hopefully experience and tempered judgement will prevail.

Jacob Harris: If we now repeal the solar text amendment flat out, then we could very well bankrupt our town due to an almost certain onslaught of litigation from these companies that have already come here and have made plans to in the future. We are still very much a small town; our infrastructure would crumble and be in shambles. Our citizens would be the most vulnerable in this situation and pay dearly.

It is important to note that solar began with the planning commission and county commission in 2019 and ended after numerous votes and court battles with the adoption of the solar text amendment on June 16th, 2022. My opponent in the race for Charles Town District county commission race was a member of the planning commission during this entire time and voted seven times over numerous years in favor of the solar text amendment. (This can all be found here https://shorturl.at/tLQYZ.)

To that end, I have made the following common-sense pledge regarding solar should I be elected: “I pledge today if elected, to introduce an ordinance that would require a reevaluation of the solar text amendment and require new increased buffer zones, to include adequate foliage that fully hides these farms from sight, proper landscaping, and a fully funded disaster safety plan.”

James Walch: I believe solar farms should not be given “by right” status and that proposed solar farms and projects should be evaluated and approved or denied on a case-by-case basis. Input from the community and surrounding farmers, property owners and residents is key. We must do better about notifying the people that are or will be impacted.

By reviewing each project on a case-by-case basis, planning and zoning commissions can be sure the basic fabric of our life here in Jefferson County is not disrupted and citizens’ lives are not negatively impacted.

Solar farms must be required to construct substantial buffer zones to adjoining properties. Many of these projects are massive in size and have completely changed landscapes and vistas for many residents.

SPIRIT QUESTION: After many discussions, public hearings, adoptions, repeals and restarts over 19 months, the current zoning ordinance revision was adopted in June 2022. What should have been done differently, if anything, during the adoption process for that zoning ordinance amendment?

Jack Hefestay: The flood gates of solar compounds are open, and each of those facilities thus far has met requirements and obtained necessary and required permits. The five compounds in the pipeline use 3,398 acres of formerly prime farmland. It short, they are all legal and could only have been prevented by a repeal or reversal of the now infamous “solar text amendment”—on the books and coming our way in the very near future. The process was all legal; the decisions to advance these solar compounds was very bad.

Although an exercise was put in place to review solar compounds (as implemented elsewhere) was performed, a more stringent series of conditions such as increased setbacks from existing housing should have been a factor (much greater distance—minimum of 100 feet at least). Setbacks from roads should be greater (minimum of 50 feet). Additional foliage (mature native trees, shrubs and bushes) should be added to terms and conditions applications. Stringent environmental controls monitoring silt runoffs and topsoil stripping limitations must be enacted.

Safety precautions should be paramount especially in the arena of fire prevention and control. Also a much broader review and investigation of environmental impacts (panel heat/radiation) and community reactions to existing solar compounds would have been very worthwhile and informative and must be included in every project proposal.

In short, the investigation on the full impact of solar compounds was done way too fast and in my opinion incomplete. Finally, a full list of individual and corporate investors should be presented and made transparent to the community.

Jacob Harris: Well, if I am honest, further public involvement would have gone a long way for our community in this matter. There were several public hearings and number public comment opportunity, and yet still people were quite surprised when these facilities popped up. Truthfully, I think it falls 50 percent on the county to advertise these things better, and 50 percent on the people to show up and care in the first place.

If we can get people from all walks of life in the county to show up and make their voices heard then we can get a true accurate picture of what it is that the people actually want.

James Walch: It is vital that the citizens of Jefferson County are aware of major changes or projects on the horizon. Information should be disseminated in a number of ways to include social media, print and outreach to those in communities that could be most affected. Many citizens feel as though advertising for public input sessions is lax at best, and by the time many in the community find out what is happening, it is already too late and decisions have been made.

Finally, the commission should begin working with municipalities and organizations within them to help get the word out when public planning sessions will be held, so the citizens of Jefferson County don’t feel like they are left in the dark on major issues.