In this week's episode of Snollygoster, Ohio's politics podcast from WOSU, hosts Mike Thompson and Steve Brown discuss why Delaware County Commissioners want to limit solar power production on private land. WOSU reporter Michael Lee joins the show.
Bad Day Sunshine
Commissioners in Delaware County cite a lack of sunshine in Ohio as one of the reasons why they are moving to place severe restrictions on future solar farms in their county.
They also cite the potential adverse impacts on development, negative environmental effects and uncertain payoffs to landowners who lease their land to solar energy companies.
This move comes just as a new state law takes effect that allows local government to basically veto renewable energy projects in their backyards.
That’s a power local governments do not have when it comes to, for example, a fracking well. State law allows those wells anywhere and instructs local officials have no power to stop them.
It looks like Delaware County could be the first local government to take advantage of the new state law and block renewable energy projects – in this case before they are even planned.
Snollygoster Of The Week
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