utility-scale solar Archives

Solar Development on Reclaimed Mining Sites: A Former Mining Geologist Weighs In

Land Use, Landowners, Uncategorized, Virginia Solar

Solar Development on Reclaimed Mining Sites: A Former Mining Geologist Weighs In

By Seth Maughan|2023-01-04T15:07:44-05:00December 15th, 2022|Land Use, Landowners, Uncategorized, Virginia Solar|

There’s been a lot of buzz around solar development on reclaimed mining sites—which usually qualify as brownfields—since the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) in August of 2022. In Virginia, at least, that interest pre-dates the IRA, and at least two projects on former coal mining sites were announced prior to August 2022. SolUnesco has been exploring post-coal mining solar opportunities in Virginia for some time, and that, coupled with my own geotechnical mining experience, might offer a unique perspective

How SolUnesco Became One of Virginia’s Leading Solar Developers

By Lea Maamari|2019-08-22T14:46:54-04:00August 22nd, 2019|Company Update, Virginia Solar|

by Francis Hodsoll, Jon Hillis and Melody S. Gee Melody S. Gee is a business and technical writer in St. Louis, MO. Next spring, SolUnesco will celebrate five years as one of our state’s leading solar developers. As we reflect on our growth and the excitement of upcoming projects, we wanted to share the story of our beginnings: two passionate developers, a well-timed market opportunity, and deep commitment to best practices. Seizing Opportunity from the Beginning In 2015, Jon Hillis

Best Practices for Utility-Scale Solar Decommissioning in Virginia Pt. 2

By Lea Maamari|2019-04-25T11:56:12-04:00April 25th, 2019|Company Update, Industry, Land Use, Policy, Virginia Solar|

by Lea Maamari and Melody S. Gee Melody S. Gee is a business and technical writer in St. Louis, MO. On March 27, SolUnesco president Jon Hillis presented at the 2019 Environment Virginia Symposium. Speaking to other industry and environmental leaders, Jon covered the evolving nature of Virginia counties’ requirements imposed on solar electric generation facilities as part of their permitting process. Jon generally focused on the decommissioning requirements placed by the counties on these solar facilities. For the past year, SolUnesco has conducted research and published reports on Virginia’s decommissioning requirements across all ninety-five counties (Review of Counties

Revisiting the Composite Index of Virginia

By Francis Hodsoll|2018-12-20T14:53:10-05:00December 20th, 2018|Industry, Land Use, Virginia Solar|

By Francis Hodsoll and Aaron Morrow In a series of blogs in March and April 2017, we discussed the Composite Index (CI) and the impact that solar energy facilities (solar projects) have on the calculation of the CI. In turn, we discussed some of the possible repercussions of the CI policy concerning the awarding of solar project permits. We continue to run across fundamental misunderstandings when it comes to the impact of solar projects on the CI calculation. To offer