More than 100 people speak to county commissioners about proposed solar plant

The debate over a proposed solar plant in Santa Fe County has lasted nearly two days and is still not finished. Some people argue that the benefits of the plan do not outweigh the potential dangers.”We are just asking for a disaster to happen, and the people who live in the communities around this are all being put under threat,” Lee Zlotoff, president of Clean Energy Coalition for Santa Fe County, said. “We are all for renewable energy, but we think it should be safe and responsible.”Nearly 130 people marched into the Santa Fe County Board of Commissioners’ chambers Tuesday morning to voice their support or opposition to a proposed solar plant near Eldorado.Many people who oppose the plant say it is because of safety concerns and potential hazards to the environment. Instead, they would like to see the plant moved to a different location.However, Joshua Mayer, the senior development manager for the solar plant, explained why he believes El Dorado is the ideal location.”So, Santa Fe consumes power,” Mayer said. “This project can provide power safely, cleanly, and reliably. It’s located next to a transmission line. The closer that we can save facilities like this to where power is consumed, the less impact we have by building long-distance transmission lines.”According to Mayer, the plant would capture energy from the sun and store that energy in a battery. Supporters say this generates enough electricity to power Santa Fe.”Battery energy storage really enables all of the other good things that we want to do with renewable energy,” Jill Cliburn, a supporter of the solar plant, said.New Mexico’s clean energy goal is to achieve 100% carbon-free electricity by 2045.