Supervisors Ben Rogers and Stacey Walker voted for the project, while Louie Zumbach voted against it. The approval means that about 750 acres will be rezoned from agricultural to agricultural with a renewable energy overlay that expires after 35 years.
The supervisors cited the complexities of the utility-scale solar installation near Coggon as a reason to take more time, before voting late Tuesday to have more discussion on setback limits and solar panel height with the county staff.
The Linn County supervisors meet for a third consideration on Tuesday night with a fourth likely to follow
ADM announced Tuesday it wants to build a carbon dioxide pipeline from its plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to a sequestration site in Illinois.
A utility-grade solar installation west of Coggon will proceed to the second of three consideration after the Linn County Board of Supervisors disregarded an advisory panel’s recommendation that they deny it.
The state has awarded $14.8 million to 4,608 residential projects and more than $26.7 million to 2,666 business installations. The average residential credit has grown from $1,850 in 2012 to $3,215 in 2021. The average business credits have increased from $7,997 to $9,990.
The decision to deny or approve may be made at any of the three consideration meetings. The final consideration and approval cannot occur until all three readings have happened.
Scientists with the Iowa Geological Survey say Iowa has the underground infrastructure for carbon dioxide sequestration, which would allow Iowa to keep more of the federal tax credits for CO2 storage and have fewer miles of new pipelines.
Despite assurances from county planning and development staff, the Linn County Planning and Zoning Commission has recommended denying a proposed solar farm near Coggon. A final decision will come from the Board of Supervisors.
Alliant Energy plans Tuesday to file a proposal with the Iowa Utilities Board to buy a large-scale solar project near Palo from NextEra Energy Resources and further develop that project into the state’s largest solar and battery storage facility.
Despite Biden's campaign promises of adding over 10 million green energy jobs, “in Iowa, people who already work in the clean energy sector ... are getting pink slips,” the senator said.
Summit Carbon Solutions is looking to build a five-state carbon pipeline that could help Iowa’s ethanol industry but has faced some opposition.
American utility companies, including those in Iowa, are facing increasing pressure to slash greenhouse gas emissions in hopes of preventing the worst effects of global climate change.
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