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DECEMBER 12, 2019
WILLISTON’S NEWSPAPER SINCE 1985
WILLISTONOBSERVER.COM
Task force maps Tastes and tunes of the season Williston’s wind, solar potential Energy plan lays out ambitious agenda By Jason Starr Observer staff
Act 174, passed in 2016, gave Vermont towns the right to weigh in on where renewable energy projects could be sited within their borders. Prior to that — driven by the state’s commitment to source 90 percent of its energy needs from renewables by 2050 — solar and wind locations were authorized solely by the three-member Public Utility Commission. In order to assert local voice, municipalities must first create a long-range energy plan that supports the state’s goals and maps where solar and wind generation should and should not be located. The municipal maps will be given “substantial deference,” according to Act 174, in siting decisions made by the Public Utility Commission. In 2018, the Town of Williston appointed an energy coordinator and convened an energy plan task force to create an official energy plan. The task force recently handed a draft to the planning commission, which is considering it as an addition to the town’s existing Comprehensive Plan. The energy plan is on the agenda for the planning commission’s Tuesday meeting. Ultimately, the selectboard will decide whether to endorse the energy plan and include it in the comprehensive plan. The Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission will determine whether the plan complies with the state’s goals and can be used in renewable siting decisions. CCRPC Senior Planner Melanie Needle helped the task force write the plan. The plan identifies 1,570 acres
in Williston as prime wind generation terrain and 738 acres as prime solar generation terrain. The majority of prime wind and solar potential is in the rural areas south of Interstate 89. The plan also identifies roughly 10,000 acres of second-tier solar and wind potential, where constraints would have to be mitigated if a renewable project were to move forward. Development constraints include the presence of prime agricultural soil, wildlife crossings and slopes. The planning commission also added Williston’s view corridors as a renewable development constraint. “Every piece of Williston is in some viewshed, but there are more prime views than others,” Planning Director Matt Boulanger said. The plan identifies views of Richmond Ridge, Gamma Ridge, pastures along River Cove and Southridge fields, among others, as high priorities to preserve when considering wind and solar sites. Williston already has 325 solar generating sites, according to the plan. It also has one small-scale wind generation site, as well as the hydro-dam on the Winooski River operated by Green Mountain Power. In addition to mapping preferred renewable energy sites, the plan also outlines steps required to help the state meet its 90 percent renewable energy goal and respond to a United Nations’ International Panel on Climate Change call for global greenhouse gas emission reductions. “We need to take an all-in approach with bold, aggressive actions, including Williston itself see ENERGY page 8
Observer photos by Al Frey
The Dorothy Alling Memorial Library hosted its annual holiday party Saturday. CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: Tinsley Everett, 3, and her dad, Ryan, enjoy the cookies that Tinsley decorated; guitarist Marcie Hernandez provides music for the festivities; JJ Garcia, 6, decorates cookies as his mom, Polly, looks on.
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