AriSEIA Sends Letter to Eloy City Council to Oppose New Solar and Storage Restrictions

Eloy City Council
595 N. C Street
Eloy, AZ 85131
 
RE: Opposition to Revision of the City’s Zoning of Solar Generating and Storage Facilities

Dear Mayor and Council Members,

The Arizona Solar Energy Industries Association (AriSEIA) is an Arizona based nonprofit, focusing on policies that advance the adoption of solar, storage, and electrification. We are active at all levels of government in the state and represent organizations throughout the clean energy economy. I am writing to urge you to not revise the City’s Adopted Zoning Map to restrict solar and storage development.

Pinal County has very serious air quality and water quantity challenges. Increased deployment of renewable energy can help alleviate both problems. Solar has no point source emissions and lower lifecycle emissions than fossil fuels. It also uses less water in operations and in its lifecycle than most other electricity generating technologies. Further, solar and storage have the opportunity to greatly benefit Eloy and Pinal County economically. A 25-year fiscal impact summary for a single project reflects the potential to bring in more than $2 million to the City, $12.5 million to the County, and nearly $17 million to the local school districts. That’s a total positive fiscal impact of nearly $32 million from a single project. Further, new companies are relocating to Arizona everyday and many of them are doing so to help meet their clean energy goals. The national Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) tracks clean energy procurement on behalf of businesses in their Solar Means Business Report and the numbers are staggering.

Please reject the staff proposal. Certainly, do not exclude ongoing projects that have been engaging with the City in good faith from any potential “solar zone.” Any changes should only apply to prospective projects. Instead of blanket restrictions, please review each project on its own merits. Also, please reject the separation requirement as it will needlessly prevent important clean energy development.

I have attached some information on the number of jobs attributable to solar in Arizona, the water usage of solar (operations and lifecycle), and the lifecycle emissions of different electricity generating resources.
Sincerely,
 
Autumn T. Johnson
Executive Director
AriSEIA 
(520) 240-4757
[email protected]

Figure 1 Life cycle water use for electricity generation: a review and harmonization of literature estimates. J Meldrum et al 2013 Environ. Res. Lett. 8 015031

Figure 2 Water Impacts of High Solar PV Electricity Penetration, NREL/TP-6A20-63011, September 2015 (operational water usage)

Figure 3 Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Electricity Generation: Update, NREL, 2021