RESPONSIBLE SOLAR MASSACHUSETTS

SUPPORT BILL TO EMPOWER MUNICIPAL ZONING FOR SOLAR SITING

House Bill No. 2312

 

THE BILL

An Act Regarding Municipal Zoning Powers:

“Section 3 of Chapter 40A of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking the following language:

"No zoning ordinance or bylaw shall prohibit or unreasonably regulate the installation of solar energy systems or the building of structures that facilitate the collection of solar energy, except where necessary to protect the public health, safety or welfare."

 

WHAT IT DOES

The Bill simply strikes outdated language from the State’s Zoning Act. It amends Section 3 of Chapter 40A of the General Laws by striking the following language: 

 

"No zoning ordinance or bylaw shall prohibit or unreasonably regulate the installation of solar energy systems or the building of structures that facilitate the collection of solar energy, except where necessary to protect the public health, safety or welfare." This sentence was added to the law in 1985 when there were no large ground mounted solar projects like we have today.  The zoning protections provided for solar under this 1985 statute were for small, on site residential systems, not today’s industrial scale projects.

 

The bill ensures that municipalities can pass and enforce reasonable regulations for solar just as they are allowed to do for any other development. This bill does not encourage or discourage solar development. It protects citizens and municipalities who are often losing court cases while trying to uphold their zoning bylaws. The current outdated Zoning Act provisions on solar are used by solar developers to bypass local bylaws to put solar anywhere with few controls. This bill protects the longstanding tradition and value of local land use control in Massachusetts. The Bill will help protect tens of thousands of acres of forests, wetlands and farmlands from large solar projects deemed locally as inappropriate. 

In summary, it:

• Updates the state’s zoning law on solar energy systems

• Allows municipalities to regulate solar siting the same as for all other land uses (residential, commercial and industrial)

• Eliminates outdated 1985 Chapter 40A, Section 3 solar clause and confirms municipal zoning powers

• Helps protect land, forests, water, wetlands and communities

 

WHY WE NEED IT

• The 1985 solar law was intended to make it easier to install small scale systems that generate electricity for use on site - not weaken zoning for the industrial ground mounted solar systems that were unknown in 1985.

• Municipalities are at the forefront of protecting land and water, but solar developers use the outdated 1985 law to threaten lawsuits if local boards impose too many conditions or deny projects.

• Large industrial solar projects have clear-cut over 5,000 acres of forest so far, with about 140,000 more acres of forest and open space planned.

• State solar siting guidelines and federal environmental laws do not adequately protect drinking water, rivers, wetlands and forests --- we need municipal zoning too.

• Every acre of forest destroyed is a huge loss for birds and other wildlife, clean air and water, natural beauty, and recreation. But most importantly, cutting forests and developing farmlands to build solar energy doesn’t make sense for the climate: natural ecosystems and farm soils absorb 10% of Massachusetts’ greenhouse gas emissions every year. Both nature conservation and solar energy must be treated as essential strategies in our response to the climate crisis.

• Massachusetts’ rooftops and parking lots alone could support up to 30 Gigawatts of solar, and sites with low-impacts to nature and farms could support another 25 Gigawatts.

• Cities, towns, and non-profits own or manage many of the best sites for low-impact solar, creating a huge opportunity for solar development by mission-driven organizations.

• By updating the state’s zoning law on solar energy systems, solar can still be built and municipalities will still be bound by current legal standards for reasonable zoning regulation.

​

Bill Sponsors: Rep. McMurtry, Norfolk; Sen. Fattman, Worcester and Hampden

More information: responsiblesolarma.org

responsiblesolarma@gmail.com