With the passage of SB931 5% of each Maryland county's protected areas (farmland, stream buffers and forests) are now prioritized for solar production. That comes out to about 100,000 acres statewide.
Here in the Ag Reserve the number looks to be around 5,000 acres.
In 2021, a workgroup of stakeholders - solar industry reps, farmers, conservationists convened to craft ZTA 20-01 that balanced the scales - allowing solar on Reserve lands for the first time but keeping it off prime soils (class 1+2). This kept our very best soils for active ag within the boundaries of the nation's foremost farmland protection effort - it just makes sense.
The industry then and now are saying that this ZTA ostensibly killed solar in Montgomery County. Untrue. Allow us to explain:
1. 3000+ acres of Ag Reserve land 2 Miles from transmission lines are available for solar under ZTA 20-01
In the GIS mapping done in support of the ZTA, county planners found that there are 445 properties totaling 4462 acres that meet all of the ZTA's standards (not prime soils, unforested, no steep slopes, no stream buffers). At the time, County leaders looking to open the Reserve without conditions were looking for a 1800 acre cap on solar in the Reserve. Here is the map of soils and screenshot shared in the Ag Advisory Committee by Office of Agriculture in 2021 listing the GIS planners and their findings:
Here in the Ag Reserve the number looks to be around 5,000 acres.
In 2021, a workgroup of stakeholders - solar industry reps, farmers, conservationists convened to craft ZTA 20-01 that balanced the scales - allowing solar on Reserve lands for the first time but keeping it off prime soils (class 1+2). This kept our very best soils for active ag within the boundaries of the nation's foremost farmland protection effort - it just makes sense.
The industry then and now are saying that this ZTA ostensibly killed solar in Montgomery County. Untrue. Allow us to explain:
1. 3000+ acres of Ag Reserve land 2 Miles from transmission lines are available for solar under ZTA 20-01
In the GIS mapping done in support of the ZTA, county planners found that there are 445 properties totaling 4462 acres that meet all of the ZTA's standards (not prime soils, unforested, no steep slopes, no stream buffers). At the time, County leaders looking to open the Reserve without conditions were looking for a 1800 acre cap on solar in the Reserve. Here is the map of soils and screenshot shared in the Ag Advisory Committee by Office of Agriculture in 2021 listing the GIS planners and their findings:
Below: 3010 acres within 2 miles of a transmission line meet the standards of County ZTA 20-01 - (land without easements that fits this classification: 954 are Prime 3, 2056 are sub prime class 4-8) Full accounting from Planning here (source County Planning)
When you zoom out further from substations there are a total of 4,462 acres available in 5acre+ parcels on 445 properties.
2. Large rooftops are plentiful for Solar throughout the County
The GIS data also shows that large rooftops (think warehouses and retail space) are plentiful in the County - offering up another 1600+ acres of solar production as shown in the table below from Planning. Not listed here - another 1,415 Acres underneath PEPCO owned transmission lines - areas already cleared of trees and not being farmed. Source: MoCo Planning Staff
The GIS data also shows that large rooftops (think warehouses and retail space) are plentiful in the County - offering up another 1600+ acres of solar production as shown in the table below from Planning. Not listed here - another 1,415 Acres underneath PEPCO owned transmission lines - areas already cleared of trees and not being farmed. Source: MoCo Planning Staff
4. Large parking garages and parking lots are plentiful throughout the county
6,478.15 acres of surface parking lots and 102 acres of parking garages exist in the county. Of these the County itself controls 770 acres of parking lots and 17 acres of parking garages. Dig into the numbers from planning here Solar parking lot canopies are an emerging way to deploy solar that keeps cars cool while harnessing what would otherwise be a heat island. Below: The solar canopy at the Gaithersburg Public Service Office - powering the equivalent of 662 homes per year. This is one of many solar installations on county property totaling 7.6 MW of solar installed by the County with more planned.
6,478.15 acres of surface parking lots and 102 acres of parking garages exist in the county. Of these the County itself controls 770 acres of parking lots and 17 acres of parking garages. Dig into the numbers from planning here Solar parking lot canopies are an emerging way to deploy solar that keeps cars cool while harnessing what would otherwise be a heat island. Below: The solar canopy at the Gaithersburg Public Service Office - powering the equivalent of 662 homes per year. This is one of many solar installations on county property totaling 7.6 MW of solar installed by the County with more planned.
3. Private Solar is booming in Montgomery County - we have the second highest total solar output in the state (behind PG) at 271 MW. MoCo has also made strides to make solar easier to get - becoming the only municipality in the country to achieve a SolSmart designation from the Department of Energy. Below - a map showing 2020 levels of residential and commercial solar from Montgomery County DEP
