Tuesday, at Becker High School, Becker area residents gathered to hear a presentation on Xcel’s solar panel proposal and to voice their concerns.

Xcel and National Grid Renewables staff presented some of the more technical information about the plan and about the panels themselves before opening the floor to those who had comments or concerns. Some notable pieces of information were that the panels would be “racked,” meaning that they turn on a pole to follow the sun. They also have a life expectancy of 35 years, after which they may be recycled or updated for continued use. The equipment would not be noisy. Any labor needed to place the panels and to maintain them would be locally sourced whenever possible. 

Bill Storm led the meeting. Storm was charged with collecting comments from the community and adding them to the proposal, or perhaps suggesting an alternate proposal to the PUC (Public Utilities Commission) based on those comments. He noted that comments will be accepted until September 15 (by the end of the business day) and that anyone who wished to submit a comment, or multiple comments, may do so by email (Bill.Storm@State.mn.us), fax (651-539-0109), mail (Bill Storm, Environmental Review Manager, Minnesota Department of Commerce, 85 7th Place East, Suite 280, St. Paul, MN 55101), or online (mn.gov/commerce/energyfacilities/#comment). 

About a dozen individuals chose to speak. Some residents reported that they were worried about the eyesore of the panels, possible environmental hazards, and the effect on wildlife. 

Mayor Tracy Bertram stated that the city was not against the panels, but they didn’t like the way the plan had been proposed. They were concerned that the placement of the panels would physically restrict the growth of the industrial park. She also was not a fan of the loss of jobs that would come with shutting down the Sherco plant, and that the solar panel field would not come anywhere close to replacing the number of jobs that would be lost. 

Sen. Andrew Mathews and Rep. Shane Mekeland both spoke as well. Mathews stated that he would support the will of his constituents and that he hoped Xcel would form a partnership with the city in this venture, so that the city’s needs and desires would be considered. Mekeland added that he will be serving on the energy committee in the legislature, but that the committee would not be meeting for a few weeks yet, and expressed his disappointment that things seemed to be moving too quickly for the committee to have a chance to review the situation.

Retired representative Jim Newberger stated that he was very disappointed in the way Xcel decided to cancel their plans for a natural gas plant, considering the work that he personally did while in office to make it so Xcel could implement the plant. 

Nathan Runke and Dan McGown, both representing labor unions, commended Xcel on their dedication to keep jobs local.

The Patriot’s own Mark Kolbinger spoke as well, stating that Xcel had failed to work closely with the city and township in making their plans. He also expressed concern, based on his own research, that the panels may cause a rise in ambient air temperature and could leak toxic materials into the ground. He was concerned about the effects that the panels might have on the environment and the area residents. 

Other attendees voiced questions and concerns along these same lines. Storm assured everyone that all the comments would be considered as he made his recommendation the the PUC. This is the beginning of the process, and more public hearings and opportunities for comment will be available as time goes on.