Ashland resident urges updated county energy data, warns $44 million leaves local economy

Megan Samintumas, an Ashland County resident, told the Planning Committee on June 23 that the draft comprehensive plan’s utilities and community facilities chapter is out of date and needs current energy-expenditure and production data to guide future planning.

"It was something like 44,000,000 is leaving the county on these energy sources that are not local and independent," Samintumas said during the public-comment period, urging the committee to include up-to-date figures and spatial data by fuel type. She offered to send links to public databases that show local energy production and suggested the county clarify whether references to solar in the land-use tables mean distributed rooftop systems or large-scale solar farms.

The request followed a short exchange with a representative from Northwest Regional Planning, who confirmed the regional planner is helping update the plan and asked whether Samintumas could point staff to data resources. Samintumas said she would provide links but noted county-level energy-expenditure figures appear not to have been updated since 2009.

Why it matters: Accurate, current energy and efficiency data can affect how the county frames both conservation and economic-development choices in the comprehensive plan. Committee members acknowledged the need for better data; the utilities section and the economic-development objectives both reference renewable energy and efficiency policies that would rely on such information.

What happens next: Committee members and staff agreed to collect data as they proceed with the draft plan and to incorporate appropriate edits in upcoming action-step sessions. Samintumas said she would share data links with the staff contact.

The committee continued its agenda after the comment, moving to objectives review and scheduling additional meetings in July to complete the plan review.