Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Clean Energy Permitting topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Charlemont planners review KP Law guidance on clean-energy permitting; Nelson volunteers for regional advisory board
Summary
Board members reviewed KP Law updates and model zoning bylaws for battery and solar facilities and agreed to consider energy bylaw topics next year; Bob Nelson volunteered to be the municipal representative to the Franklin Regional Planning Advisory Board and recommended Molly Cantor as alternate.
At its Nov. 6 meeting the Charlemont Planning Board reviewed a KP Law eUpdate outlining significant changes to permitting for clean-energy facilities and the related model zoning bylaws for battery energy storage systems and solar arrays.
Board members noted the KP Law materials and related draft regulations from the state’s EFSB/DOER process. They observed that the battery-storage model could be added verbatim to local bylaws while solar is already addressed in Charlemont rules. The members discussed the stated expectation that permitting timelines be shortened so matters do not drag on for more than approximately one year.
Separately, Bob Nelson volunteered to serve as the town’s municipal representative to the newly formed Franklin Regional Planning Advisory Board (FRPAB); he said the FRPAB meeting schedule does not conflict with Planning Board meetings and suggested Molly Cantor as an alternate. The board agreed to consider energy-related bylaw changes in dedicated meetings next year rather than at a single Spring Town Meeting presentation.
