A West Liberty woman whose family runs a farm and trucking business is encouraging the Muscatine County Board of Supervisors to research the pros and cons of solar farms.
Emily Daufeldt gave copies of articles that discussed the advantages and disadvantages of solar farms to the board of supervisors during its regular meeting on March 17.
Daufeldt’s statement to the board comes after county outreach representative Merlin Bartz with Chicago energy company Invenergy introduced himself to the board at its March 3 meeting.
Bartz told the board at the March 3 meeting of Invenergy’s plans for a 200-megawatt solar project in Goshen Township. A formal presentation to the board of supervisors about Invenergy’s solar project is planned for Monday, March 31.
“I’d like to talk about the solar farms that’ll be coming, or that are on the table, I guess,” Daufeldt said. “I know I’m early. I just want to share some information and some of my thoughts and concerns so that you guys can think about it for the week.”
Daufeldt and her husband, Bryan, and their five children live outside of West Liberty, where they farm crops and raise turkeys plus own and operate a trucking company.
“The idea of harnessing energy from the sun is a great idea,” Daufeldt said. “Just how to do it is what we are still working through. Though the solar industry says solar energy leaves no carbon footprint, I will share with you a couple of articles that state otherwise. We must do our due diligence to be informed and make the best decision for our county and all who live in it.”
Daufeldt said the disadvantages of solar farms include having hundreds of acres of corn and soybean fields turned into solar panels, solar farm fires, cleanup of solar farms from storm damage, taxation of solar farms, the distribution of energy produced and negative health impacts from electric and magnetic fields, known as EMFs, and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS.
“One of the questions I think that we all obviously will ask is, ‘Will solar farms increase or decrease property values across the county and especially to the neighboring farms or residences nearby?’” Daufeldt said.
Daufeldt asked the board to research the issue.
“When you can confidently say that permanently turning hundreds or thousands of acres of crops into solar panels will bring more good than harm to Muscatine County and the communities, we need … policies and ordinances to be prepared for devastation by wind or fire, broken equipment, polluted soil and water and a plan to de-service solar panels. I would look forward to hearing all about it in detail.”
Wind and solar energy have been hot topics for a long time, Vice Chairperson Danny Chick said.
“I think this board has had a lot of this in front of them before,” Chick said. “It’s just a challenge that we have as we move forward with some of these projects.”
It’s a balance of landowner rights versus the good of the public, Jeff Sorensen, board member said.
“How do you balance that? What do you do?” said Sorensen, who invited Daufeldt to the March 31 presentation by Invenergy.
Private burial zoning
The board of supervisors conducted a public hearing on two proposed amendments to the Muscatine County Zoning Ordinance – one on the adoption of regulations pertaining to private burial sites in Muscatine County and the other on amendments to the zoning ordinance for the regulation of data centers.
No action was taken after the public hearing.
County Development Director Eric Furnas will incorporate changes and schedule the actual ordinance amendments and the first reading.
The Zoning Commission recommended that a private burial site be defined as “any area used to inter or scatter human remains where use is restricted to members of a family and where the interment rights are conveyed without a monetary payment, fee, charge, or other valuable form of compensation or consideration.”
A private burial site would require a special use permit in the R-1 Residential District and the A-1 Agricultural District.
“Under Iowa law, there are provisions for being able to inter remains on private property,” Furnas said. “If we don’t have restrictions specific to this type of land use, they can literally do it and the county has no record. This way, at least, they’ll have to get a special use permit, so we’ll have record of it. We’ll have a recorded site plan so it’s more likely to get picked up like when a property is being reviewed for sale.”
Data mining center zoning
The Zoning Commission recommended that cryptocurrency mining or production installations and data centers be defined as “a physical facility that uses computing and networking equipment to collect, store and process data, as well as distribute and access resources. It may also include supporting equipment such as batteries, back-up generators and cooling equipment.”
The facilities would require a special use permit in both I-1 Light Industrial District and I-2 Heavy Industrial District.
“We’ve learned, as all the other counties have, that these things are quite different from some of those other things like cell towers and substations that have a lot of potential for noise, heat generation, fires that get out of control. They have a very high electrical consumption rate,” Furnas said. “Most of the counties that I’ve been in contact with that have dealt with this are actually moving them towards a commercial or industrial use area.”
In other action, the board:
Approved amending the fiscal year 2024-2025 budget, which showed increased expenditures and increased revenues during the current fiscal year. The amendment doesn’t increase taxes to be collected in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025.
Total increases in service area expenditures were $862,625. Total increases in service area revenues were $1,214,925.
Approved fiscal year 2024-2025 budget appropriations. The amendment doesn’t increase taxes to be collected in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025.
Amounts appropriated were for sheriff, $10,000; jail, $554,500; Conservation Board, $145,705; Board of Health, $3,400; Information Services, $25,000; Zoning, $23,500 and nondepartmental, $100,520.
Authorized the Historic Preservation Commission to purchase and install signs to commemorate historic transportation features in Muscatine County.
Authorized a weight embargo on secondary roads.
“The County Engineer is directed to restrict all traffic to an 11-ton gross load where deemed necessary on certain sections of the road system and to erect signs to advise the traveling public of these limits,” the resolution said. “If conditions warrant, the embargo is rescinded by the removal of signs by direction of the County Engineer.”
Re-appointed Janelle Spies to the Muscatine County Zoning Board of Adjustment for a five-year term ending March 31, 2030.