Various federal, state, and local land-use regulations govern the development and installation of utility-scale solar projects. These are worth reviewing to better understand the complexities of approving large-scale solar installations and their impact on the environment.
County-level solar ordinances: This spreadsheet outlines the various provisions that have been addressed in Virginia counties and is a work in progress. Our goal is to gradually add more solar ordinances. (Please contact us to suggest changes in the content or to have your county or town included next.)
DEQ Erosion and Sediment Control Handbook: Virginia’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) issued this handbook which governs environmental protection on industrial construction sites. By definition, large-scale solar projects are considered to be industrial construction sites because of their size.
Federal & state stormwater laws: This webinar provides a thorough review of the federal laws governing stormwater and environmental protection. All large-scale solar projects fall under these rules.