In recent years, community groups and individuals opposed to large- scale wind and solar power plants, have fought those projects one at a time on a case by case basis. A public hearing and expected vote next week by county supervisors could mean an end to such public protests by banning such projects altogether or it could point to a future where strife between developers and community groups becomes routine. Reporter Mike Lipsitz tells how you can weigh in on the issue while county heads ponder it…
Following a public hearing on Tuesday, November 6 county supervisors are expected to vote on a policy called the Renewable Energy Conservation Element, or RECE, 4.10. If they approve the policy as recommended by the planning commission, large-scale solar fields and wind farms will be banned from areas zoned Rural Living and in existing community plan areas. If it’s not adopted, says Chuck Bell, president of LVEDA, or the Lucerne Valley Economic Development Association, “fields of solar panels and wind farms will threaten the rural character and economies of our desert communities.” Bell has reason for concern. Developers are already aiming to erect thousands of acres of solar panels in and around Lucerne Valley and he knows such operations bring dust and erosion, habitat destruction, and depressed property values. In preparation for Tuesday’s public hearing, LVEDA has organized a community meeting for 6 p.m. this Thursday, November 1 at the Lucerne Valley Senior Center on Highway 247 in Lucerne.
Tuesday’s public hearing will stream online and to the first-floor teleconferencing room in the County Government Center on White Feather Road in Joshua Tree where public comment may be made via live video link.
COUNTY SUPERVISORS SET TO VOTE ON RENEWABLE ENERGY POLICY NEXT WEEK
