A bill being readied for introduction in March would create a state standard for review of renewable energy projects by Colorado jurisdictions. Is this really needed?
by Allen Best
A bill creating statewide standards for local governments in Colorado evaluating renewable energy projects is likely to be introduced in coming days or weeks. Is this a solution in search of a problem?
Very few local governments in Colorado have adopted regulations seen as onerous by energy developers. Pueblo County several years ago rejected a solar farm based on neighborhood opposition. They feared loss of views. Mesa County in January adopted a six-month moratorium on new utility-scale solar projects with the active support of at least one local solar company. Delta County commissioners at first rejected a solar farm on Garnett Mesa but the proponents made changes more acceptable to neighbors.
Colorado’s counties have not been hard-nosed about renewable energy. That point was made by State Sen. Byron Pelton, a former Logan County commissioner who represents much of northeastern Colorado and has a small cow-calf operation near Sterling.
In an op-ed published in the print edition of The Denver Post on Feb. 4 (not available online), he took a swing at the “Democrat majority and radical environmentalists” who would usurp local control in regulating renewable energy siting.
“Most proposed renewable energy projects are approved, and when proposals are denied, it’s for good reason,” wrote Pelton. “Those reasons range from environmental impact concerns and impact on agriculture and wildlife to inadequate benefits for the host community.”
Boulder County, he pointed out, led the way in using moratoriums to address local concerns.
“They imposed a five-year moratorium on oil and gas, giving them time to contemplate the best path forward for their community. None of the moratoriums imposed on renewable energy development have come anywhere close to approaching five years.”
On the same day Pelton’s op/ed was in the Denver Post, USA Today published a story: “US counties are blocking the future of renewable.”
“At least 15% of counties in the US have effectively halted new utility-scale wind, solar or both,” the newspaper reported. The limits come in the form of outright bans, moratoriums, construction impediments and other conditions that make green energy difficult to build.”
The newspaper reported that 375 counties blocked new wind developments in the past decade compared to 183 counties who got them. Many were in Tennessee, North Carolina, and Kentucky, but also in Vermont. Maps published with the story show a couple of counties with wind restrictions on Colorado’s eastern plains, and several on the Western Slope, which have far less wind value. The chart also shows solar restrictions in several Colorado counties but provides no detail.
One common requirement in zoning rules intended to block new wind farms specifies the height of a turbine relative to adjacent property lines. Most new wind turbines in the U.S. are 500 feet or taller. Some counties require setbacks of 1,320 feet, 1,500 feet, a mile or, in some cases, 3 miles.
Colorado Public Radio in a Feb. 8 story reported that State Sen. Chris Hansen, D-Denver, said he intended to introduce a bill that would create a standardized process for local governments considering renewable energy projects. CPR’s Sam Brasch reported that an early draft of the bill also identified rules to restrict development of wind and solar farms and also transmission lines.
Hansen yesterday confirmed that he intends to introduce the bill in March.
A flashpoint for this lies in Washington County, which is in Pelton’s district. While county commissioners in Akron have welcomed the Colorado Power Pathway that crosses the county’s southern section, the county in 2021 also approved some of the state’s toughest regulations on renewable energy projects. CPR says those regulations require one-mile spacing between structures and new wind turbines.
The CPR story also cites a study from the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law that found local governments across 34 states have approved at least 228 restrictions on renewable energy development.
New York, California, and Illinois adopted legislation similar to that being drafted by Hansen to limit local control over renewable energy projects.
Drilling down on geothermal
Will Toor, director of the Colorado Energy Office, was asked during a legislative committee meeting by Sen. Cleave Simpson what role does geothermal play going forward? He didn’t offer an expansive answer, but did mention that important research is underway.
Occidental Petroleum has gotten Department of Energy funding that is focused on driving down the cost of drilling the same way that the oil and gas industry has been able to drive down costs, he answered.
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