COURTLAND
The Southampton County Planning Commission at its March meeting discussed the possible adoption of a large-scale solar energy project ordinance to the Southampton County Code.

The purpose of the proposed Section 18-429 is would provide siting, development and decommissioning of solar energy projects in Southampton County with the condition that it promotes and protects the public health, safety and welfare of the community and development of renewable energy resources.

“They decided that they want to study it further [before making any decisions],” said Deputy Director of Community Development Beth Lewis, secretary for the planning commission. “At a meeting, perhaps this summer, they’ll have experts come in and talk about the pros and cons [of adopting such an ordinance].”

Text amendments to A-1 Agricultural and M-1 and M-3 Industrial would also need to be adopted to add larger-scale solar energy systems to the Southampton County Code