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James City County Supervisors weigh limits on utility-scale solar, debate discouraging forest clearing
Summary
Staff told supervisors the county has roughly 6,700 acres that meet draft criteria for utility-scale solar, but about 6,024 acres are forested. Board members debated adding a policy to discourage clearing forestland for solar to limit new development and avoid incentivizing pre-application timbering.
Chair convened discussion on a draft solar energy generating facilities policy that would set a cap on the amount of land eligible for large, utility-scale solar projects. Planning staff reported about 9,462 acres zoned A-1 agricultural countywide; after excluding subdivisions, water, and resource-protected areas, staff said roughly 6,700 acres meet basic site criteria and that about 6,024 of those acres are currently forested while roughly 700 acres are already cleared.
Planning staff (Thomas Weisson) told the board a special-use…
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