To Block Solar Energy Projects, One Community Lumped Them in With Junkyards and Adult Bookstores — SkimNews
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- Montgomery County, Indiana lists utility-scale solar projects on an official register of undesirable land uses alongside "adult-oriented businesses" and junkyards
- The county Board of Commissioners unanimously rejected a 200-megawatt solar project on Sept. 28, the latest clash in a broader local pushback against renewable energy siting
- The county's zoning classification effectively treats industrial-scale solar as comparable to adult bookstores and salvage yards, a framing that shapes which projects receive local approval
- The 200-megawatt project's rejection illustrates how a single county's land-use definitions can function as a de facto veto on utility-scale clean energy investment in rural Indiana
Why it matters: Montgomery County's decision demonstrates how local land-use classifications — not state renewable energy mandates — remain the decisive gatekeeper for utility-scale solar in rural Indiana. By formally grouping solar with adult businesses and junkyards, the county gives itself a ready-made legal rationale to reject projects regardless of state clean-energy goals, potentially diverting the 200 megawatts of capacity to other jurisdictions.
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