Fayette County Commissioners to hear from public on proposed industrial solar farm ordinance

GEORGES TOWNSHIP, Pa. — An opportunity for Fayette County residents to voice their opinion on a solar farm ordinance will be held Thursday afternoon, as a group of residents in Georges Township continue to fight against a proposed industrial solar farm to be built in their neighborhood.

Michael Lampe and his wife have been fighting against the more than 800-acre industrial solar farm going into their neighborhood for months. It’s essentially planned to go in across the street from the Albert Gallatin Area Senior High School.

Many neighbors are against the plan, too, and have “no solar farm” signs in their yards.

“It would literally be feet from our property line,” Lampe told Channel 11′s Andrew Havranek. “Fifty percent of my house would be surrounded by these solar panels.”

The Lampes and others against the industrial solar farm are concerned about potential hazards to their health, wildlife, and property values.

“Who wants to be that close to that kind of stuff? We don’t want to be guinea pigs here,” Lampe said.

On Thursday, they’ll be going to a meeting with Fayette County Commissioners urging them to approve an ordinance that would put restrictions on where solar farms could be placed.

“We’re not even saying that there’s not a use for these, but they just do not belong anywhere near schools or residents,” Lampe said.

The meeting is scheduled for 1:45 p.m. at the Gallatin Building in Uniontown.

In a Facebook post, Commissioner Scott Dunn said in part, “We are required by law to hear from the public, but more importantly we WANT to hear from the public, whether your support for or against the ordinance, the provisions in the ordinance, and not necessarily your personal opinion on solar energy. The commissioners will not be voting on the ordinance at this meeting.”

“We do love our county, and we don’t want to see it go down this path,” Lampe said.

To read the full proposed ordinance, click here.

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