County planners flag major engineering, permitting gaps in Willow Enterprises solar park plan

Carbon County planning staff told the county Planning Commission that a proposed commercial solar energy facility by Willow Enterprises in Mahoning Township has several substantive engineering, permitting and site‑design deficiencies that preclude recommending approval at this time.

The project applicant proposes development of about 10.08 acres for a ground‑mounted solar array. The county review noted wetlands and that “portions of the proposed land development and access driveway . . . are located within the hundred year flood plain as established by FEMA flood insurance mapping.” Staff also reported that the plan shows 5,400 panels on the submitted drawings but that the applicant told Mahoning Township supervisors in testimony the eventual number could be “approximately 5,800 to 5,900.”

Ivan, a county planning staff member who presented the review, said the submission lacks multiple required items, including a complete current perimeter survey with bearings and distances, a stormwater management and soil‑erosion control plan, a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES/PDES) permit application for construction‑related stormwater, and certification of ownership and surveyor seals on the plan. “If the above noted conditions cannot be adequately addressed or adequately mitigated before preliminary plan approval, we recommend plan rejection of the project as proposed,” Ivan said.

Why it matters: The county review ties the missing materials to public‑safety and resource concerns. Staff flagged potential impacts to Mahoning Creek — described in the review as a high‑quality cold water fishery — and said applicants must show how runoff from panels will be dissipated and will not concentrate beneath arrays or drain into adjacent parcels. The report also called for evidence that adequate water for firefighting can be supplied and asked the applicant to show how emergency and maintenance vehicles would access arrays across steep slopes and near the creek.

The review raised additional logistical and infrastructure questions: access to the site is proposed via an easement over a bus company property from Ashtown Road; plan reviewers asked for a construction traffic routing and bridge/road use plan and warned that a single‑lane stone bridge and Ashdown/Ashtown Road segments may be vulnerable to heavy construction vehicles. Staff also asked for clarification of the underground electrical conduit route to the existing PPL pole and for minimum sight‑distance and driveway cross‑sections at the site entrance.

The county review recommended the Mahoning Township supervisors condition any preliminary approval on receipt of a complete set of the missing submissions, including approval of erosion and sedimentation controls by the Carbon County Conservation District and PADEP, and on resolving floodplain and access concerns. Ivan specifically noted the township’s ordinances and Pennsylvanian permitting rules that require preliminary plan conditions to be satisfied before a final plan can be approved.

At the end of the exchange the Planning Commission voted to forward the county review comments to Mahoning Township for use in the township’s review and decisions.

What remains open: The review lists multiple items that must be provided before final approval — a completed stormwater and erosion plan, NPDES/PDES permitting, complete survey bearings and distances, a transportation/trucking plan and any required road bond, FEMA floodplain coordination, confirmation of panel counts and transformer details, and evidence that firefighting and emergency access needs can be met. The applicant and surveyor will need to respond to those items before a county recommendation of approval is possible.

Provenance: County planning staff presentation of the Mahoning Township land development review and the commission motion to forward comments.