Local Environmental Impact
With a single clean energy project like Loblolly Solar, Surry County can make a big environmental impact by replacing polluting fossil fuel generation with safe, low-cost, clean power. But what does Loblolly Solar mean for the land, air, water and wildlife in Surry County?
Simply put, Loblolly Solar is designed with safe, proven technology and governed and monitored by strict regulations to ensure that there will be no negative environmental impact.
Using proven solar PV technology, the same installed on homes, businesses, and schools, solar farms are proven to have no negative impact on local land, water, and air quality. There are over 4,000 solar farms and 275,000,000 solar panels currently installed across America and no evidence of any negative impact to the local environments in which they are installed. Invented in the 1950s, this 70 year old technology is well-studied, well-understood, and widely deployed. Each day that passes contributes to an ever-growing mountain of evidence of the safety and efficacy of the PV technology used to power solar farms.
Furthermore, solar farms are subject to strict local, state, and federal regulations ensuring local land, air, water, and wildlife are protected. These regulations are written with a level of scrutiny that greatly exceeds regulations applied to agricultural or timber operations. For example, prior to starting construction, this project will be required to complete the following impact studies and receive approval from the authority with jurisdiction that the results indicate that there is no negative impact to the local environment:
| Protected Local Resource | Method | Law | Enforcing Authority |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water | Stream & Wetland Delineation 100' protected buffer around delineated streams and wetlands | Chesapeake Bay Protection Act | US Army Corps of Engineers VA DEQ Surry County |
| Water | Erosion & Sediment Control Plan and Permit | VA Code Chapter 840: Erosion & Sediment Control Regulations | VA DEQ Surry County |
| Water | Stormwater Management Plan and Permit | VA Code Chapter 870: Virginia Stormwater Management Program Regulation | VA DEQ Surry County |
| Water | Groundwater Monitoring throughout project life | Surry County Solar Ordinance Article IV Section 4.10 | Surry County |
| Soils | Soil Study and Remediation (if required) | Condition of Land Use Permit | Surry County |
| Wildlife | Natural Resource Assessment | 9VAC15-60 Sections 40, 50, 60 | VA DEQ VA DGIF |
| Wildlife | Rare, Threatened, and Endangered Species Habitat Assessment | Endangered Species Act | US Fish & Wildlife Service |
| Combustion Turbine (gas) | $107.05 | $56.38 | $56.38 |
| Offshore Wind | $130.60 | $56.38 | $56.38 |
| Nuclear | $141.52 | $56.38 | $56.38 |
Cleaning up the grid:
On average in Virginia, 63% of the electricity we consume currently comes from fossil fuels. Only 1% comes from renewable energy. But things are changing.
In March 2020, the Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA) was passed. The act will create up to 29,000 solar jobs while providing enormous market opportunities for solar in Virginia. The VCEA pledges to transform Virginia’s electric grid to 100% clean energy by 2050. The Loblolly Solar project will add power generated by the project onto the grid, thereby replacing electricity generated from fossil fuels and helping Virginia reach its clean energy goal.
With the Loblolly Solar project we can be a part of Virginia’s clean energy future. This project — and others like it around the state — will protect future generations while making an important impact on the environment and economy.
