BAD AXE, Mich. — A group of Huron County residents is organizing a rally and tractor parade ahead of a key public hearing on a proposed large-scale solar development, saying they want more residents involved in decisions about the future of farmland in the county.
Organizers said the rally and parade will take place Sunday, Sept. 20, in Bad Axe. The event is intended to raise awareness ahead of a Sept. 24 public hearing involving a proposed solar project covering approximately 1,650 acres.
The residents said they are not opposed to individual property owners installing solar panels. Their concerns center on large, industrial-scale solar developments on agricultural land.
“We’d like to have people show up for the rally,” one organizer said. “We started out asking farmers with their tractors” before expanding the invitation to people with trucks, trailers and other vehicles.
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Organizers said their message is focused on protecting farmland and ensuring residents have a greater voice in decisions involving large energy developments.
The group also raised concerns about the amount of land Huron County could eventually devote to renewable energy projects. They said county officials have previously approved an ordinance allowing up to 15,000 acres for solar development in areas under county zoning. The residents said they are pushing commissioners to reduce that amount.
The residents said land for the projects is generally being leased from private landowners rather than purchased or developed on public property. Some questioned whether large solar installations should be treated differently from other industrial uses of agricultural land.
Another concern raised during the interview involved what happens at the end of a solar project’s useful life. Organizers questioned whether money set aside for decommissioning would be enough to remove panels, posts and other infrastructure if a project were abandoned or a developer went out of business.
Huron County is already home to hundreds of wind turbines, and organizers said large-scale solar development has become a more prominent local issue in recent years.
Residents interviewed also expressed concerns about potential effects on neighboring homes, farmland and property values. Those concerns were presented by the residents during the interview and were not independently verified.
The group said education is a major goal of its effort.
“I just feel like there’s just not the information or the transparency that there needs to be so that people can make good, informed decisions,” one organizer said.
In addition to Sunday’s rally, organizers plan an informational meeting from 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 22, at the Knights of Columbus hall in Bad Axe. Organizers said the meeting is open to everyone, including supporters of solar development and residents who have not formed an opinion.
The week’s events will culminate Sept. 24 with a public hearing concerning the project’s permit application. Organizers said the hearing will be held at the senior center on Nugent Road and will be open to the public.
Organizers said they hope residents attend the meetings, learn more about the proposal and make their views known before local officials make a decision.
“We just really want the people that are making these decisions to put the people, the residents, first,” one organizer said.