Will County planning commission recommends denying 6,099-acre Earthrise solar special-use permit after wetlands and corrosion concerns

The Will County Planning and Zoning Commission on May 12 recommended that the county board deny a proposed special-use permit for a 6,099-acre, 96-parcel commercial solar facility proposed by Lincoln Solar Energy LLC / Earthrise.

The hearing, held on court remand to allow cross-examination and the presentation of additional evidence, included extended direct and cross-examination of the developers lead witness and two days of focused technical testimony about wetlands and soil conditions. Ben Jacoby, attorney for the applicant, told the commission the only issue on remand was the special-use permit and that the applicant had supplemented the record with a May 8 memorandum and an updated site plan. "The variances are not at issue tonight," Jacoby said, adding the applicant had filed supplemental wetland delineations and site-plan refinements.

Plaintiffs counsel Steven Becker objected to introduction of some supplemental materials and repeatedly questioned the developer about the decision to submit a single special-use application covering noncontiguous parcels. Becker also pressed the company on the projects interaction with wetlands and hydric soils, the Illinois Land Evaluation and Site Assessment (LISA) score and the potential for galvanized-steel pile corrosion to leach zinc into soil and groundwater.

The developers…