Homesteading Forum banner

US town rejects solar panels....

6.1K views 126 replies 28 participants last post by  Patchouli  
#1 ·
....amid fears they 'suck up all the energy from the sun'



A US town has rejected a proposal for a solar farm following public concerns.
Members of the public in Woodland, North Carolina, expressed their fear and mistrust at the proposal to allow Strata Solar Company to build a solar farm off Highway 258.
During the Woodland Town Council meeting, one local man, Bobby Mann, said solar farms would suck up all the energy from the sun and businesses would not go to Woodland, the Roanoke-Chowan News Herald reported.
Jane Mann, a retired science teacher, said she was concerned the panels would prevent plants in the area from photosynthesizing, stopping them from growing.
Ms Mann said she had seen areas near solar panels where plants are brown and dead because they did not get enough sunlight.
She also questioned the high number of cancer deaths in the area, saying no one could tell her solar panels didn't cause cancer.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/w...-solar-panels-amid-fears-they-suck-up-all-the-energy-from-the-sun-a6771526.html
 
#4 ·
As usual, the OP picked a "source" filled with half truths and omissions.
The citizens naturally distrust solar farms because of who is behind it.
The whole thing is an eyesore, and will kill property values.
the town is fighting for it's life, but of course the "administration" doesn't care about a small town, not enough votes to matter.
And yes, those huge panels do shade the ground and kill vegetation.
Don't these people have the right not to have their town destroyed by this debacle?
http://www.roanoke-chowannewsherald.com/2015/12/08/woodland-rejects-solar-farm/
 
#6 ·
And yes, those huge panels do shade the ground and kill vegetation.
Don't these people have the right not to have their town destroyed by this debacle?
http://www.roanoke-chowannewsherald....ts-solar-farm/
They didn't have problems with the other solar farms already there, and the "town" only has a population of about 850.

My high school had more people
 
#7 ·
The production of solar cells do cause pollution enough to keep crops from growing. But unless they are making them in that town it wont be a problem there anyway.

When I was in Florida I read an article in the local paper that said a company wanted to build a plant that uses super heated lasers to burn trash and convert it to fuel. There was to be no pollution (according to the company) and would get rid of the large trash piles there. Many were against that too without having all the facts. Never did hear how that one turned out.

Many Audubon groups are against wind generators and solar too. But still want us to clean up our act.
 
#8 ·
A tabloid site from the UK having some fun with the unsophisticated rural folks maybe?

The local article says three other solar farms were already approved, maybe these people think that is enough.

"Three other solar farms had previously been accepted by the town council, with one of them now putting solar panels up.
The solar farm companies seek placement around Woodland because it has an electrical substation the solar power generated by the panels can be hooked up to the electrical grid.

Strata’s proposal would have competed encircling the Woodland substation."
 
#9 ·
I share their concerns. We only make 1 gallon of sun tea at a time because I'm not sure we have enough sun power for 2. Seriously, let the town decide if they want them. Some of the uppity places in New England won't allow wind mills offshore because they say it spoils the view. Maybe these people don't want to see solar farms either.
 
#10 ·
The article demonizes a small town to make the "global climate deal" look better. Local servants made out to be villains. Not all towns have people standing in line to be elected officials. Might be more to this story!
:confused: I am totally stumped at how you got that out of the article. Poking at bit of fun at the mind blowing ignorance maybe, especially on the part of the science teacher who ought to know better. It didn't have anything at all to do with the global climate deal.

This is right up there with Leonardo DiCaprio not knowing about Chinooks. Y'all thought that was pretty hilarious. A science teacher thinking it's possible to soak up all the sun's rays and leave the plants to starve is pretty crazy and funny too.
 
#11 ·
A tabloid site from the UK having some fun with the unsophisticated rural folks maybe?

The local article says three other solar farms were already approved, maybe these people think that is enough.

"Three other solar farms had previously been accepted by the town council, with one of them now putting solar panels up.
The solar farm companies seek placement around Woodland because it has an electrical substation the solar power generated by the panels can be hooked up to the electrical grid.

Strata’s proposal would have competed encircling the Woodland substation."
The Independent is not a tabloid.
 
#12 ·
A tabloid site from the UK having some fun with the unsophisticated rural folks maybe?

The local article says three other solar farms were already approved, maybe these people think that is enough.

"Three other solar farms had previously been accepted by the town council, with one of them now putting solar panels up.
The solar farm companies seek placement around Woodland because it has an electrical substation the solar power generated by the panels can be hooked up to the electrical grid.

Strata’s proposal would have competed encircling the Woodland substation."
Yes it sure is when the material they get is from
FREELANCERS AND BLOGGERS~!
 
#13 ·
Solar farms are for deserts. Very limited ecological impact, naturally sunny, what the heck are they doing in NC? I realize they get plenty of sun in NC, but doesn't the west have issues with brown outs these days? Go soak up some sun in the desert, geniuses.

I've just seen the 3rd solar "farm" completed within 5 miles of my house, in the mountains of NC. They are rather small but there is one of the largest in the U.S. not far from here.
There is also another factor going on here with Duke power finally getting behind the building of some. They have some of the most advantageous laws regarding price that the power company has to pay for killowatts from those farms. IOW Duke gets a great deal. Look up who our governor used to work for and it will all make sense.

I live amongst rural farmers who go back several generations and have never heard such stupidity come out of their mouths. But stupid knows no boundaries.:shrug:
 
#14 ·
#16 ·
Members of the public in Woodland, North Carolina
They're not breaking any stereotypes down there.
I love the idea of solar, but I do have to admit that the panels are an eyesore. Wind turbines on the other hand don't look all that bad to me. I've seen some of the big farms in CA, and they're kind of cool. I wouldn't want them in every picturesque view or in all directions, but here and there they are not too bad.
 
#17 ·
They didn't have problems with the other solar farms already there, and the "town" only has a population of about 850.

My high school had more people
So they don't matter?
My town is smaller than that, and we wouldn't want that garbage here
It'll just go broke like all the other solar scams pushed by Obama and paid for by us.
Then the town will be dead, the thieves in Washington will move on to another small town that doesn't matter to them.
 
#18 ·
:confused: I am totally stumped at how you got that out of the article. Poking at bit of fun at the mind blowing ignorance maybe, especially on the part of the science teacher who ought to know better. It didn't have anything at all to do with the global climate deal.

This is right up there with Leonardo DiCaprio not knowing about Chinooks. Y'all thought that was pretty hilarious. A science teacher thinking it's possible to soak up all the sun's rays and leave the plants to starve is pretty crazy and funny too.
Destroying a small town is funny to you too huh? :rolleyes:
 
  • Like
Reactions: Sumatra
#19 ·
IMHO - Whoever owns the land should be able to do with it as they wish. If the property owner wants to build a solar farm, so be it or do the lot of you not believe in property rights?

WWW
 
#20 ·
IMHO - Whoever owns the land should be able to do with it as they wish. If the property owner wants to build a solar farm, so be it or do the lot of you not believe in property rights?

WWW
Only their own. But I understand the need for zoning and proper siting of things like this. Of course the decisions should be based on rational thought and not the idea that we'll somehow run out of sunshine.
 
#22 ·
They're not breaking any stereotypes down there.
I love the idea of solar, but I do have to admit that the panels are an eyesore. Wind turbines on the other hand don't look all that bad to me. I've seen some of the big farms in CA, and they're kind of cool. I wouldn't want them in every picturesque view or in all directions, but here and there they are not too bad.
Guess everyone is entitled to their opinion, personally I believe solar panels look a whole lot better than those gawd-awful wind turbines. Plus they have a fraction of the maintenence issues,and a much longer lifespan.
Got a 1KW solar array on my roof, and it looks pretty nice in my opinion. The reduction in my power bill is a nice bonus also.
 
#23 ·
Only their own. But I understand the need for zoning and proper siting of things like this. Of course the decisions should be based on rational thought and not the idea that we'll somehow run out of sunshine.
Nobody thinks we are running out of sunshine, that's just the spin the lefties put on it to mock those who don't agree with the scam
 
#24 ·
Guess everyone is entitled to their opinion, personally I believe solar panels look a whole lot better than those gawd-awful wind turbines. Plus they have a fraction of the maintenence issues,and a much longer lifespan.
Got a 1KW solar array on my roof, and it looks pretty nice in my opinion. The reduction in my power bill is a nice bonus also.
If solar is so good, why did all the solar companies Obama backed go belly up?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Rosco99 and Sumatra
#25 ·
If solar is so good, why did all the solar companies Obama backed go belly up?
this is one reason:

In 2010, China produced enough panels to generate 10,922 megawatts of electricity (about five times the capacity of the Hoover Dam), equivalent to 45 percent of new solar panel production worldwide. By 2012, that had risen to 20,903 megawatts, or 56 percent of total global production. As Chinese factories churned out panels, prices around the world fell. Between 2009 and 2011, the price of solar panels dropped from $2.79 to $1.59 per watt, pushing many American solar companies into bankruptcy.
 
#26 ·
  • Like
Reactions: greg273