County Democrats hear opposing sides on solar project
Auglaize County Democrats on Thursday hosted Against Birch Solar Coordinator Jim Thompson and Lightsource Bp Project Director Shanelle Montana on Zoom to make their case regarding the Birch Solar Project in the Shawnee area.
County Democrats were approached by Thompson’s group about a presentation. Party Secretary Joe
Monbeck explained they wanted to give an equal voice to project developers and invited both to present.
Thompson focused on the scale of the project and population density and explained his take on the disparities between a Payment in Lieu of Taxes, or PILOT program, which several entities are discussing whether to adopt, and estimated tax pay
ments should the project move forward.
Thompson calculated an estimate for tax revenue without the PILOT by taking the facility value at $350,000,000 times a taxable rate of 26% to get $91,000,000. He then estimated a local tax rate of 6.5 percent to get the estimated tax revenue per year $5,915,000 — nearly double the $2.7 million Lightsource
Bp projects. The PILOT revenue would be divided with 54 percent going to school districts, 17 percent to the county, 5 percent to Apollo Career Center and 24 percent to the township.
He said they estimate 20 tons of lead would in included in the 635,000 PV solar panels, a claim Montana refuted. Project officials have maintained that materials used in the panels are safe for the environment.
Other concerns Thompson voiced included monitoring for water contamination and flooding potential. Lightsource has indicated they are working with landowners to not impact drainage tiles and make repairs when necessary.
Montana focused on the reliability of the panels, explaining the project was chosen because it was already disturbed farm land. She said the company is working to minimize the project’s visual and environmental impact by adding pollinator friendly plants between solar panels. She said their goal is to be responsible with the project.