DEARBORN COUNTY, Ind. — Four meetings have been planned across Dearborn County to address the future of solar energy farms on the now largely rural farmland.
We’ve been looking into the divisive issue since a group organized a protest against them outside our “Let’s Talk” event in Lawrenceburg last month.
Two Dearborn County meetings at the end of the month could determine whether a moratorium is placed on applications for any solar development under Article 19 of the County’s Zoning Ordinances.
The planning commission’s Feb. 23 meeting was shifted to South Dearborn High School to accommodate a large crowd.
Planning and Zoning Director Nicole Daily told us the order of presentations for the meeting is still being finalized, and they plan to share details on who will speak and when later this week.
“In anticipation of a large turnout, public comments will be limited to topics related to Article 19 of the Dearborn County Zoning Ordinance, as well as ordinances pertaining to battery storage and data centers,” Daily said. “To remain consistent with the agenda and applicable ordinances, we ask that public comments refrain from addressing specific solar projects that have not yet been formally submitted or presented.”
Linea Energy’s nearly 1,200-acre project is an example of a development that is planned, but hasn’t been formally submitted to the county for approval.
We talked with the Ruehlmann family, who talked us around their property in Manchester and showed us how the Linea proposal would surround it.
Casey Ruehlmann said the family wasn’t sure what comprehensive changes needed to be made, but wanted to see additional buffers between houses and solar arrays and caps on total acreage that individual solar developments could use.
Daily said the plan commission would either vote “favorable, unfavorable or no recommendation” on whether county commissioners should adopt an ordinance implementing a moratorium.
Commissioners would then consider the recommendation at their meeting scheduled for 6 p.m. Feb. 24 at the Dearborn County Government Center.
Bobby Rauen started a petition to force a moratorium that gathered nearly 1,800 signatures, and he has called for people to come to a town hall on Feb. 12 at the Sunman American Legion at 412 Eastern Ave. to learn more.
He said us the doors will open at 5 p.m., and the meeting will start at 6 p.m.
Linea Energy Development Director Chris Barry told us their team plans to hold a town hall as well on Feb. 17 at Agner Hall on the Lawrence County Fairgrounds.
“We’ll have various subject matter experts on hand to talk through environmental studies, design, construction, equipment safety, economic impact and more. We invite those interested to attend and have their questions answered by hardworking folks close to these solar projects,” Barry said.
He didn’t say when that town hall would begin, and issued the following statement about neighbors’ concerns and calls for a moratorium.
“I am excited to see the high level of civic engagement and pride in the democratic process on display in Dearborn County. Citizens have legitimate concerns that must be addressed before any solar project can proceed.
We believe the current ordinance was crafted with those concerns in mind: setting clear compliance guidelines for the construction, operation, and decommissioning of a solar farm that protect the health and well-being of the community.
The ordinance also protects the free exercise of property rights, a core tenet of American values that has set us apart from our founding and has been integral to the vibrancy of our economic strength over the last 250 years.”
You can see the full planning commission agenda here:
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