Solar Farms: No Amber Waves of Grain

Anyone wondering what’s happening on Fisher Street at the former Carlstrom Pressed Metal building? Recently it looks like a tornado tore through there and left a path of destruction. At least a half-dozen mature trees lining the street have been cut down. Then, the land was marked with little flags, tape, and spray painted lines. Now it all makes sense — it’s going to be Westborough’s second solar farm. The first one is on Milk Street, on low-lying land next to the train tracks near the bridge. That also was a visible shock when the trees were removed. But its effect on the streetscape was not as dramatic.

Solar farms, in my opinion, are not things of beauty. I am in favor of what they do, but not so much how they look. It’s a shame that so many mature trees have to come down to accommodate them. Now I’m wondering how many more of these we will see go up in town, and are there any regulations regarding where they can go, how they look and the cutting of trees to facilitate their operation.

According to Westborough Town Planner Jim Robbins, “Solar projects are considered public utilities under zoning and as such can be placed in any district as long as they meet the dimensional standards of zoning." If this is going to become more common in town, should we have regulations to deal with it?

A quick Google search turns up interesting information: there are tax incentives for both residential and commercial solar farms. The Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit is 30% of the cost of the solar property as the tax credit. Furthermore, there are Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SREC’s), which provide incentives for homeowners and businesses to generate solar power which can then be sold back to the electric companies that need them to satisfy government mandates. There is a profit to be made!

There is also depreciation allowed which can result in a tax refund. One could conclude that solar farm developers are not necessarily in it just to do what’s best for the environment and clean energy. I am all for small business and making a profit. I’m for renewable energy. But I’m feeling that some regulation is needed so that the landscape isn’t drastically altered in a negative way, especially in or near a residential area or a “gateway” to the town.

Other kinds of construction, even residential, are subject to all sorts of regulations including zoning, conservation, historic commission, and Design Review Board just to name a few.  

I’m interested to know how others feel about this. Comments?