SAN BERNARDINO • The moratorium on commercial solar projects has been extended by more than 10 months.
Last week the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors unanimously passed the moratorium extension on commercial solar energy projects to allow the county more time to complete the planning process of adding a renewable energy component to the county’s General Plan. The original 45-day halt was extended by 10-1/2 months.
According to the supervisors, while the county has begun to make headway, it needs another three to six months to update the development code. The need for proper planning creates certainty for solar development in this county. Delaying development during the planning process protects businesses and developers from investing time and money into a project that potentially could then be zoned against the new development codes.
“Adding a renewable energy component to the County’s General Plan is crucial,” Third District Supervisor James Ramos said through a news release. “The current plan is nearly silent on renewable energy and the development code permits solar projects to back up against residential areas in the unincorporated parts of the County. We need the next three to six months to properly plan for the impact these solar projects have on the rural communities of our county. We will work diligently to complete this process in a timely manner.”
Companies that have already submitted completed applications to Land Use Services will not be affected by the delay, however.
Recently, members of the Lucerne Valley Economic Development Association urged the supervisor and the board off supervisors to extend the moratorium.
“LVEDA strongly supports the extension to remain in effect until the Development Code, Renewable Energy Element and community plans are amended to include siting criteria and conditions of approval necessary to protect the land-use integrity of our communities,” LVEDA President Chuck Bell wrote in an email to Ramos.
Two Lucerne Valley-area renewable energy projects, Agincourt and Marathon, were approved prior to the moratorium.
Ramos believes that proper planning will provide a variety of safeguards.
When solar projects are proposed in neighborhoods, they open themselves up to litigation from communities that could challenge the projects. By addressing this issue over the next six months with proper planning, we will be able to protect our residents from solar developments in their backyards. At the same time, we will heighten certainty for solar industry by better defining our development codes to include renewable energy projects, he said.
First District Supervisor Robert Lovingood said solar projects already approved and in the pipeline will not be affected by the extension.
“I want to be clear, San Bernardino County welcomes renewable energy project applications,” Lovingood said. “This extension is a balanced approach that will enable the county to protect property owners and set fair ground rules that solar developers can live with.”