Union County will pause new solar energy permits

Solar energy development in Union County will pause for the foreseeable future. No new permit applications will be accepted or approved until the existing Union County Solar Ordinance #74 is reviewed. This will limit the ability of energy companies to build solar projects within Creston by creating a stay on all pending permit applications.

Energy projects in Union County are monitored through two systems, the Utility Scale Solar Energy Systems and Battery Energy Storage Systems. Union County monitors these services and their capacities for operation within the land they are using. The original solar ordinance was approved in December 2021.

A USSES refers to a solar farm which is constructed by installing multiple solar panels across acres of land, generating power for a community through solar rays. They do not refer to individual solar panels for individual or residential use. A BESS is a storage unit which stores excess energy generated from USSES systems.

In the resolution the board of supervisors signed to enact this new stay on Wednesday, March 19, the board said this review of their policy will be to check for taxation implications, specifically of those which were originally unforeseen when approving the county’s first major solar project.

Union County’s major solar field, one to the east of Creston, is managed by Alliant Energy. The field is projected to generate 50 megawatts, or 50 million watts, of power at peak capacity and will be used by the county to analyze new information and potential new expenses which taxpayer funds would be used to maintain.

Alliant began their achievement in harnessing the sun’s solar rays and begun full operation in December. Their solar field expects to power 11,000 homes annually and generate $1.2 million in local school district revenue and $270,000 in Union County property taxes and $1.9 million in total property taxes.

Since Alliant’s proposal of this project in September 2022, the company underwent a multi-year construction project to purchase 300 acres of land, construct over 90,000 solar panels and underwent testing to make sure this energy was safe and reliable for the planned 30 years of operation. Any company which would wish to do the same will have to be patient if they wish to build their projects in Union County.

Alliant noted in December their next report on the Creston solar field will be a one-year recap. That report will come sometime in December. The company is also in control of an 8-acre solar field near the Creston school district, which the company pays Creston Schools for the land. The field holds 2,700 panels and generates 1.4 megawatts at capacity.

Union County’s resolution was drafted following a discussion during last week’s regular meeting for sharper regulations on how taxpayer money should be used for these projects.

“We still don’t know how, with the current energy field we have, how that works,” Supervisor Dennis Hopkins said during Wednesday’s meeting when introducing the resolution. “We gave up dollars for taxation of the lands bound. We get a utility replacement tax from the utility board, but we don’t know how much that is... So far, nobody can tell us what we’re getting. Until we can figure that out, we have a vested interest in not allowing a bunch more fields where we give up more tax dollars and don’t even know what we’re getting in return.”

Supervisor Rick Friday noted three different energy companies which have requested land access in Union County for the construction of solar fields. Friday mentioned the range these companies have requested vary between 15 and 75 acres.

“It’s happening so fast right now, it’s okay to put a stay or pause on this until we see,” Friday said. “This is the first year where we’re going to see how this will affect us.”

Companies can avoid the limits of the stay by building a solar field which does not generate more than one megawatt of energy. If a solar field does not produce more than that amount, it does not classify as a USSES according to the county’s solar ordinance and an approved permit is not required.

A cap is in place according to the ordinance for how many acres solar projects can take up in Union County. Solar fields can not take up more than 800 developed acres in county lines.

Additional state regulations could delay Union County’s reinstatement of energy permits. House File 834, introduced by Gov. Kim Reynolds, can change statewide regulations of solar and other renewable energy projects.

This bill was expected by members of the Union County board to give statewide regulations on how renewable energy can be used in the state. The bill, which is currently on the Iowa House floor, discusses changes to electric power generation in Iowa, including a noted shift of attention to nuclear power.