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Officials with the Town of Victoria want to hear from local residents before making any decisions about airport solar. The same goes for Kenbridge and the county as a whole. Victoria will start things off though, with a scheduled public hearing for next week. Officials want to know if residents support the idea of using airport land for solar projects. 

The idea of using airport land for solar projects was floated back in June at the Lunenburg County Board of Supervisors meeting. Some county staff and board members feel it could be a revenue generator, but again, nothing is set in stone just yet. 

Developers will be asked to pitch their proposal on how to handle a relatively small solar project, between 20 to 25 acres, on the southern side of the airport property. Sitting roughly three miles west of Kenbridge, the property is jointly owned, so any decision can’t be made by county supervisors alone. In 1966, when the Lunenburg County Airport was developed, ownership and expenses were split three ways. Lunenburg County owns 50%, while the towns of Kenbridge and Victoria each own 25%, respectively. That means any economic project or even moving forward on a potential project has to be agreed to by a majority of owners. 

The thought here, Lunenburg County Administrator Tracy Gee told supervisors on Thursday, June 12, is to put an RFP (request for proposals) out and see what developers put forward. And that’s where the towns come in. As we mentioned above, a majority of the owners have to agree before any project moves forward. Officials in both towns, meanwhile, want to understand how their residents feel. 

“No action will be taken on this matter until after the public hearing,” Victoria Town Manager Rodney Newton confirmed to The Dispatch. “The Victoria Town Council will include any public comments in their decision-making. (In this way), public hearings can impact policies.”

What do the rules say? 

As a reminder, in adherence with the Code of Virginia §15.2-734 and 15.2-951, each entity must hold a public hearing to solicit public comment about the jointly-owned real estate for a potential lease to an authorized offeror for consideration of a future community solar project. The area of the Lunenburg Airport identified for the community solar lease is a “20-25 acre portion in the southeast quadrant, next to the approach to Runway 02,” according to the county’s website. For Victoria’s part, Newton shared with The Dispatch that the administration has not received community feedback prior to the public hearing. 

Victoria’s public hearing is slated for Tuesday, July 8 at 7 p.m. in the Victoria Town Office at 1809 Main St. in Victoria. Lunenburg’s public hearing will follow on Thursday, July 10 at 6 p.m. in the Lunenburg Courts Building in the General District Court Room on the second floor. Kenbridge will hold its mandatory public hearing the week after on Tuesday, July 15 at 6:50 p.m. in the Kenbridge Town Hall at 511 East 5th Ave. #2 in Kenbridge. 

Airport solar questions 

One of the key issues raised by Lunenburg supervisors involved impact. How would a solar farm affect the airport and any airplanes landing or taking off there? Earlier this year, Lunenburg County Airport Manager Larry Way told The Dispatch that the airport averages 30 flights per month, based on the data. However, in the same breath, Way claimed the data might not be completely accurate.
“Many flights do not stop at the FBO (Fixed Base Operator) to sign the guest register but utilize the airport to hone their skills both for landings and approaches,” Way said in that earlier interview. “This number most likely does not reflect the total number of aircraft using the airport.”
So what impact would a solar farm have on 30 or more than 30 aircraft as they take off and land? The Dispatch reached out to a number of sources to get an answer on this. 

First off, we went to the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration). Officials there directed us to a document on their website, highlighting a May 2021 policy. That policy requires airports to measure the visual impact of the specific project. Does it create glare? If so, how much? 

“In certain situations, the glass surfaces of the solar energy systems can reflect sunlight and produce glint (a momentary flash of bright light) and glare (a continuous source of bright light),” the policy states. “Initially, FAA believed that solar energy systems could introduce a novel glint and glare effect to pilots on final approach. FAA has subsequently concluded that in most cases, the glint and glare from solar energy systems to pilots on final approach is similar to glint and glare pilots routinely experience from water bodies, glass-façade buildings, parking lots, and similar features.” 

So can solar create glare? Yes, but the amount varies based on the solar farm’s location and the size of the project. To get approved, a solar project here would have to prove to the FAA it has the glare under control. 

Ways to combat glare 

Currently, an estimated 20% of airports in the U.S. have some type of solar project attached. The FAA says there are several ways to address that problem. First, and simplest, you can work  with a developer that uses anti-reflective coating and texturing on the solar panels. 

The second option also addresses a second concern of Lunenburg supervisors. They asked if solar farms could affect the airport’s radar? The FAA says that can be avoided by maintaining a 250 to 500-foot setback from any takeoff or landing areas. 

Has this worked before? Several much bigger airports have concepts like this, but to compare apples to apples, The Dispatch looked for smaller regional airports. What we found as an example was Humboldt County, California. In an area similar to Lunenburg in that it is rural, the county used solar to build its own microgrid. In their case, it’s grown to the point it helps power the airport and they routinely sell energy back to the grid. But again, everything depends on the proposal. How much of that 25 acres would the grid use? Is a developer willing to put anti-reflective coating on panels?

Editor’s note: KVD Editor Brian Carlton contributed to this report.