It’s too early to pass judgment on solar farm
Through the economic prospects look bright, it’s important for
citizens and supervisors to avoid passing too much judgment on a
massive solar farm proposed in southern San Benito County.
It’s too early in the planning process
– nowhere beyond infancy stages at this point – to give a thumbs
up or thumbs down either way on such a complex project with
potentially vast benefits and potentially negative consequences.
Some of the many areas in question include the proposal’s
financing, expectations for environmental mitiga
tion and how much an economic and tax benefit the county would
gain.
It’s too early to pass judgment on solar farm
Through the economic prospects look bright, it’s important for citizens and supervisors to avoid passing too much judgment on a massive solar farm proposed in southern San Benito County.
It’s too early in the planning process – nowhere beyond infancy stages at this point – to give a thumbs up or thumbs down either way on such a complex project with potentially vast benefits and potentially negative consequences. Some of the many areas in question include the proposal’s financing, expectations for environmental mitigation and how much an economic and tax benefit the county would gain.
As reported in the Pinnacle last week, the company Solargen in a July report says that it has optioned “more than 13,000 acres of land and has letters of intent or is negotiating to acquire control of an additional 18,000 acres” between San Benito and Fresno counties, with plans to develop around 6,000 acres locally with around 40 percent of that space taken up by solar panels.
They have estimated the farm would create about 100 jobs while costing as much as $4 billion in capital and generating up to $9 billion over a 25-year span.
First and foremost, those kinds of numbers signal an enormous opportunity that county leaders and residents cannot take for granted. If anywhere near accurate, the proposal has the potential to change the face of the local economy and the ability for San Benito County government to generate revenue and provide services. It could result in a widely beneficial trickle-down effect for a large majority of the county that would see little to none of the visually unpleasant aesthetics.
At the same time, county leaders can’t just ignore the South County population whose livelihoods and surroundings undoubtedly would change and likely for the worse. Their concerns, though they are a small minority fighting an uphill battle, must be heard and considered strongly.
While the area remains less than primed for agriculture and perennially thirsty for water, it’s hard to argue covering the valley floor to such an extent – albeit for an environmentally-friendly end result – will not result in some sort of negative impact.
There likely will be a required environmental impact review, even though the company is initially pushing against the possibility, so we should learn a lot more about potential roadblocks, such as endangered species, as the proposal unfolds.
The key is, it hasn’t unfolded yet. Before we get overly excited or way down in the dumps, let’s take a deep breath and see where this thing goes.
