Solar Farm Hearing Rattles Pine Creek Township Residents
By Christopher Miller
PINE CREEK TOWNSHIP – Residents of Pine Creek Township came out in full-force, standing-room-only public conditional use hearings recently regarding a proposed 13-acre solar farm project along Sulphur Run Road.
Two public hearings were held, on November 6 and November 13 respectively, where residents showed up en-masse to hear about the proposed project and voice their opinions on the matter.
The proposed project is a 13-acre solar farm on existing farm land currently owned by resident Benjamin Carson and farmer Chris Ulmer.
Some public concerns expressed during the hearings included risks to wildlife or other hazards, which would be minimal as the entirety of the project would be fenced-in and no live wires would be exposed at the site, the impact on groundwater runoff and the ground itself from the “glare and heat build up” surrounding the solar panels which was “not experienced” in the past by the developer, concerns of a maximum of 40 decibels heard at the site, and the panels being “visually unappealing” by nearby property owners despite the area being fenced-in with visibility blocked by a row of evergreen trees.
While some noise will be generated at the site, those would only be during daylight hours as the solar farm tractors will be following the sun throughout the day. As well, the original setback from the road was at 100′ and that had since been pushed back to 600′.
Other concerns and comments heard by township residents and neighbors of the proposed solar farm included what would residents “get out of this being in their backyard,” what is stopping the property owner from expanding this site in the future, aside from PPL saying that only this size 2.5MW (megawatt) solar farm would be allowed on the site to feed into the electrical grid.
Another concern heard was the reflectivity of the solar panels to those who live above the proposed site. To this, the developer assured the concerned residents that, “water has more glare” and that the panels have anti-glare coatings that go on the glass to mitigate it.
The November 13 hearing began with remarks from real estate appraiser Dennis C. Greenaway who was hired to look at the possible effects of real estate values in proximity to solar farm projects.
“I read 32 studies about the effects of solar farms in relation to real estate values, but all of the reports are based on solar farms of 100 acres or more, so I will do my best to summarize those results. Some properties that were within a half mile of an 100 acre plus solar farm went down by 1.5% in value. Other studies said that there were increases in real estate value. I look at all things when I do an appraisal: smells, noises, railroad tracks, things like that that would intrude in the home value. “When this is built and the fence is up, it will fade into the background, once upon a time the farmer put up a silo and a barn and there was no problem with that. What would the community get from this? More electricity going into the grid without the use of oil or gas, taxes for the community. My analysis was based on 32 studies of what I could find: big operations, and this is a small operation.”
Additional concerns brought forth at this hearing included things such as the contents and chemical makeup of the solar panels, electrical impulses coming off of the power lines, and reports for historical significance of the area given that Indian artifacts were found nearby.
Pine Creek Township Supervisors did not vote on the matter but have 45 days to render a decision to accept, reject it, or accept it with conditions.
A decision is due on or before December 28, 2024.
