Michigan Legislature strips away local control over wind, solar fields - MLive.com

Michigan Legislature strips away local control over wind, solar fields - mlive.com

LANSING, MI – In the ongoing battle between renewable energy and resistant rural communities, score a big win for energy projects.

Michigan senators on Wednesday gave final approval to a two-bill package that allows the state to approve large wind, solar and energy storage proposals even if some locals in those areas don’t want them.

It’s a significant shift in power for Michigan, which hasn’t built enough renewable energy generation fast enough to meet new required benchmarks that state lawmakers approved last week: 60% renewable and 100% clean energy by 2040.

Too many townships, experts say, have rejected proposed solar fields and wind farms in recent years, often for aesthetic reasons alone.

“This is a critical component of achieving our bold clean energy goals in a smart and responsible way that moves Michigan forward,” said Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks, D-Grand Rapids.

Related: 100% clean energy target set by Michigan lawmakers after negotiations

Senators voted along party lines Wednesday afternoon, 20-18, to send House Bills 5120 and 5121 toward Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. The House passed them last week along party lines.

Proponents argue Michigan’s patchwork of township and county solar and wind ordinances is the biggest obstacle to a more rapid buildout of its renewable energy generation fleet.

State control of permitting for solar, wind, and power storage projects with a capacity of 100 megawatts or more is the only way to circumvent the influence of misinformation and high-pressure tactics seen in opposition to renewable energy at township halls across the state, bill sponsors say.

The bills effectively strip from local governments the permitting and zoning authority of such utility-scale renewable projects. The Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) would instead have control over where these installations are constructed.

A recent amendment to the legislation would allow an initial four- to eight-month period when developers could work with local officials before the state takes over. However, locals could not place any restrictions on projects stricter than state rules.

“This type of community involvement is pretend,” said Sen. John Damoose, R-Harbor Springs.

Related: ‘They don’t own their view’: Farmers seek state control of renewables

While Republicans argue these bills subvert local governments, Democrats argue it supports property owners who want these projects on their land but have been stopped by local opponents.

“No one is forcing a landowner to do this,” said Sen. Sean McCann, D-Kalamazoo.

Both climate action advocates and farmers testified in recent weeks that these bills are the only way to get off fossil fuels fast enough to meet Michigan’s renewable energy goals.

MPSC Chairman Dan Scripps told a Senate committee that the bills represent a “necessary shift” in how renewable energy infrastructure is sited.

Not only is state control needed to meet new state benchmarks for renewable power generation, Scripps said, but it would bring oversight in line with other energy infrastructure like power transmission lines and oil and gas pipelines. State experts are well-equipped to analyze an array of impacts, he said.

The MPSC would consider existing local land use such as acreage already used for energy generation, as well as expected effects on prime farmland.

Related: Who should decide where in Michigan to build large wind farms and solar fields?

“The commission must also consider potential alternative sites, including brownfield locations, and to include fire response plans, emergency plans, dark-sky friendly lighting plans, and decommissioning plans,” Scripps said Tuesday.

“I fully expect that these protections will ensure that the interests, perspectives and concerns of local communities are fully evaluated and considered by the commission just as they are in every other energy infrastructure project for which we have siting authority.”

He also said the bills guarantee communities will participate in planning renewable energy projects because developers are required to pay for public engagement and community benefits.

“There is no equivalent requirement that a pipeline developer, for example, must fund the participation of local communities through which their pipeline traverses,” Scripps said.

But local government officials are furious, especially township and county association groups that have testified against it.

“These bills are not about whether or not we need clean energy in Michigan,” Judy Allen of the Michigan Townships Association said Tuesday. “This is about who is best equipped to make those decisions and who should have the authority to permit them.”

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