Airport solar field passes another hurdle

CLINTONVILLE – The addition of a 22-acre solar field that would contain roughly 10,424 solar panels located at Clintonville Municipal Airport moved one step closer to becoming reality after the Clintonville Common Council approved a letter of intent (LOI) for a land lease with OneEnergy Renewables.
The approval of the LOI came at the council’s Dec. 9 meeting. Ald. Tammy Strey-Hirt was excused from the meeting. The approval of the LOI does not guarantee that a solar field will be constructed on the airport’s property. What it does do is allow more research to be done to determine the feasibility of such a project.
At the council meeting, Clintonville City Administrator Caz Muske told the council that because Clintonville Municipal Airport is being considered for this project, the project needed to receive approval from the Clintonville Airport Committee, as well as receive a conditional use permit from the city’s Plan Commission.
“Our Airport Committee has recommended moving forward with the feasibility of the project and the Plan Commission has approved a conditional use permit for this type of use at our airport, therefore the next step in this process is for the council to approve the letter of intent so we can do our due diligence,” Muske said.
The solar field would be a partnership between the city with Great Lakes Utility and OneEnergy Renewables.

Presentation
Stanley Minnick, development manager with OneEnergy Renewables, presented to the council the plan for developing a solar field on Clintonville Municipal Airport property.
The solar field was originally proposed to the Clintonville School District in August, Minnick said. But the district decided not to pursue to the project because the Clintonville FFA was using the land for crops. It was at that point that OneEnergy began working with Clintonville Utilities Manager Dave Tichinel about the possibility of using an area of land located at the airport.
Minnick said the solar panels that would be used for the project collect sunlight on both sides of the panels.
“What’s nice is, even if the panels are covered with snow, and they will be covered during certain periods, there is still some reflectivity off of the ground,” Minnick said.

The solar panels would also be on a track, which would allow them to be moved, Minnick said.
The proposed solar field would be 5-megawatt (MW), which is equivalent to 10 million kilowatt hours (kWh) per year, Minnick said.
“That would be the equivalent of roughly 1,300 Wisconsin household’s annual energy production consumption,” Minnick said.
With the airport being considered for the proposed solar field, Minnick said that would present some “interesting characteristics.” He said the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) would need to be consulted to make sure all its guidelines would be followed.
He also reiterated that if the LOI were approved by the council, it would not guarantee the project would happen. What it would mean is OneEnergy would be able to start hiring professionals to do due diligence regarding the site. This would include engineering work and environmental analysis.
“It seems like a pretty nice spot from the feedback we got from Department of Public Works,” Minnick said.
If the proposed solar field were ultimately approved, Minnick said a cover crop would be planted prior to construction of the solar field to help prevent erosion. Once the infrastructure is in place, additional vegetation would be planted.
Minnick acknowledged that there is no guarantee that OneEnergy would still be in business in 30 years. Because of that, a decommission study would be performed by one or two independent engineers. This study would measure the cost to remove the solar array equipment and the value of the metal on the site should it be scrapped.
“Is the amount to remove the equipment greater than the value of the salvaged material?” Minnick said. “We put a bond on this. We reevaluate that because typically in years one through ten the cost to remove is less than the value of the salvaged material.”
He added that 95% of the costs that would be spent over the next 30 years would be spent prior to any energy being produced by the solar field.
“We’re going to put all the money in upfront and then there is this long 30-year life of producing energy,” Minnick said.
Minnick said OneEnergy would be responsible for constructing the solar field, would own the solar field, and would maintain the solar field.
“We only get paid for the energy we produce,” Minnick said.

City official comments
Muske added that OneEnergy would be making its money on the project by selling the energy produced by the solar field to the city’s utility department.

The city would receive land lease funds from OneEnergy that would be greater than the current land lease funds it is receiving by crops being planted on the land now, Muske said.
“In our opinion, we feel that this is a very beneficial project for the community as a whole,” Muske said.
“There is a lot more down the road that needs to happen before this project takes place, but it does look very promising for us,” Tichinel said.
If the project were approved and constructed, Tichinel said residents who get their electricity from Clintonville Utilities should not expect their electric bill to decrease immediately. He added that there would be some upfront costs for Clintonville Utilities.
Council President Greg Rose claimed that if the project would come to fruition, at peak operation, the solar field could cover roughly 50-55% of the city’s electricity needs.