Who will pay for solar panel cleanup in Beaufort County? | Eastern NC Now

 

The issue of who will pay for the cleanup of toxic solar panels when they reach the end of their useful life, which is 15-20 years, is causing concern in a Virginia county, and it is an issue that Beaufort County's commissioners need to pay attention to.  In addidtion to some smaller facilities, we have a large one at Terra Ceia called Wilkinson Solar.

 

Decommissioning a "solar farm" is a more extensive and costly operation than building it, and if funds are not required to accomplish it, the cost will fall on local landowners or local government or a combination.  Solar operators claim their is a "salvage vlaue" of solar panels, but in practice that has been a fantasy.  What they are is a toxic stew of a variety of harmful materials that can leach into the soil.

 

Here is a Virginia newspaper's analysis of how their local Board of Supervisors (commissioners) failed to require adequate reserves to clain up a large solar facility there:  https://starexponent.com/opinion/commentary-spotsylvanias-solar-decommissioning-will-be-a-nightmare/article_9c3ddeac-1ada-5a2c-bcf7-cf2fed55e644.html

 

To make matters worse, most solar "farms" in North Carolina are organized as LLC's with little in the way of assets except the solar panels themsevles.  These lease the land, so they do not own that, and their proceeds of operation are paid out to their owners.  There will be no assets left to fund a cleanup unless local governments rquire the solar operators to fund a decommission reserve as a condition of approval of the facility.

 

Beaufort County is like this county in Virginia.  We have failed to mandate a proper decommmissioning fund.  Our county solar ordianace is sorely lacking in that regard and we have no wind ordinance at all.