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Board members favor reviewing solar project proposals case-by-case while county policy is developed
Summary
Board members discussed whether to pause solar farm approvals in one district and concluded to handle proposals individually until a comprehensive county policy is adopted; no moratorium was proposed or adopted.
Members of the Westmoreland County governing body discussed how to handle incoming solar farm applications after a board member asked whether the county should delay approvals until a comprehensive plan is in place.
An unidentified board member raised the concern that applicants “should know if they're getting ready to submit something” and asked whether the board should stall future proposals or put an item on the agenda to prevent approvals until a county plan is adopted. Speaker 2 replied that the board should “take them as they come” and vote on each project based on its merits. Speaker 4 told the board that state-level action in Richmond has put local authority at risk: "we almost did not kill that bill. It would have taken y'all's authority away," and added that the fight in Richmond will likely become more difficult.
No motion to impose a moratorium was made or approved. The discussion ended with members agreeing to continue reviewing proposed solar projects individually until the county adopts a comprehensive policy reflecting local priorities.
Board members did not set a timeline at the meeting for drafting or adopting the comprehensive solar policy; next steps were limited to handling incoming applications on a case-by-case basis and raising the issue for future policy work.
