By MICHAEL CRIMMINS
Glasgow News 1
Barren County County Attorney Mike Richardson is working on an ordinance that will place additional requirements on future solar farms.
The ordinance details requirements for things such as sites, construction, installation, enlargement, operation, maintenance and decommission that future Solar Farms must meet. For example, the ordinance would establish a 2,000 foot setback requirement from any non-participating properties or rights-of-way.
The ordinance would not effect the Wood Duck Solar Project, which has been “grandfathered in,” Barren County Judge-Executive Jamie Bewley Byrd said.
“When you say grandfathered in that means they are in the process and have done certain checks they’re required to do,” Byrd said. “There is something we can do — not to stop this current project — but to [put more limitations] going forward.”
“[Barren County’s ordinance] does not say ‘no solar farms can happen in Barren County’ all this does is put more stipulations and requirements [on future solar projects],” Byrd added.
Kentucky Revised Statute 278.718, which was passed on June 29, 2023, states that “a local government shall have primacy over the provisions and requirements…and any conflict between an order of the board and a local ordinance, permit, or license shall be resolved in favor of the local government’s ordinance, permit, or license.”
“The House [of Representatives] and the Senate did pass [a law] where we could pass a solar ordinance if you did not have zoning in your county,” Byrd said. “Until this legislation was passed you could not put in a specific [ordinance] that would only apply to that type of use.”
Originally planned for the April 15 Barren County Fiscal Court, the ordinance will be put before the seven county magistrates at a April 29 special-called meeting. It is a public meeting, but Byrd said people would have to ask to speak.
She said she is in favor of the ordinance, commenting that it “is what everyone wanted” since the public spoke against countywide zoning at the April 2 town hall meeting.
“I think it’ll pass,” Byrd said. “I don’t think we’ll have a no vote.”
The ordinance would require being approved in two readings by the fiscal court to go into effect.
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