It’s been more than two years since Yakima County commissioners first approved a moratorium on solar development, and they want more time on the issue.An initial six-month moratorium on new, moderate- to large-scale solar facilities was enacted in July 2022. Commissioners have continued to extend the moratorium since, and are planning on extending the moratorium another six months.Commissioners on Tuesday set a hearing about the moratorium at 10 a.m. Jan. 28. The public can attend at the Yakima County Courthouse or online via Zoom.Commissioners have raised concerns about large solar facilities, including fire response, impacts to wildlife, and the loss of agricultural land.Solar developers can use the county’s process or go through the state’s Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council for approval, so the county moratorium hasn’t halted solar development.The county approved the Black Rock project in 2022 before the moratorium. Three other solar projects have gone through the state process – Goose Prairie, High Top and Ostrea. The projects are in eastern Yakima County.
The county has been mulling changes to its code, including allowing for agrivoltaics, or the dual use of land for solar energy and agricultural production, as an option. Thomas Carroll, Yakima County planning official, told the council the planning commission will discuss code changes in February.Commissioner LaDon Linde said while he is not a “huge” proponent of solar energy, alternative energy facilities should have avenues to develop, so long as they do not impact agricultural land.”Maybe six months down the road, there’s something we can develop to be able to say yes to some of these projects,” Linde said.Commissioner Amanda McKinney said she supports agrivoltaics, as it does not take agricultural land out of production, but was skeptical about the how renewable energy will meet increasing demand across the state.”There’s no way that solar and wind are going to meet that void, but the others of course are nuclear and hydrogen, and continuing natural gas exploration,” McKinney said. She said she hopes that the incoming Trump administration will focus more on those energy options.County at odds with stateThe board has been at odds with the state over solar development, with a judge ruling that the Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council can supersede county zoning rules.Solar developer, BayWa.r.e. Solar Projects LLC went through the county process for its 1,060 acre Black Rock solar project. A spokesperson for the company told the Yakima Herald-Republic in 2023 that’s because they believe local jurisdictions are often more efficient than the state and there is better opportunity to get buy-in from local stakeholders.In December interview with the Yakima Herald-Republic, Gov. Jay Inslee