ESTEVAN — The RM of Estevan is looking to amend its zoning bylaw, in an effort to give itself protection when dealing with renewable energy companies.
The RM has given first reading to the changes, and it hopes to give second and third readings at its Feb. 28 meeting. It has been seeking comments from those who have questions or concerns.
Reeve Jason LeBlanc said the RM wants to be a leader in transitioning to green energy projects.
"With some recent meetings that we've had, there are some solar companies that are now making entrance into our RM, and being that we've got a tremendous history dealing with SaskPower and the coal mines, we really had nothing in the sense of a bylaw that would be prepared for solar and wind," said LeBlanc. "So all we've done is we've made some pretty clear standards."
He believes with these standards for wind and solar projects, they can encourage these companies to come to the RM.
"We want to protect the interests of the RM and our ratepayers," said LeBlanc.
Changes to the community plan are also occurring, and LeBlanc believes they're in step with the bylaw amendments.
"We encourage industrial operations to move into our RM. That's what we want. We want acreages. We want more people here. But if we put up a solar panel and a wind farm and don't have the rules in place, well it's going to devalue some of the real estate for acreages," said LeBlanc.
He stressed the RM is not trying to block the 100-megawatt solar project that was announced for the RM in 2022 and took a step forward earlier this year with the announcement of the independent power producer. The solar facility is expected to be online in 2026.
"We're going to make it so that the developers have plans. They're not just going to come into the RM and run us over," said LeBlanc.
"When these large-scale developments come in, the RM usually gets a black eye in the sense of we got to write cheques for road maintenance, construction, the development and building of roads to accommodate all this, yet the city and so on gets the benefits from it because they get hotels and stuff, which is great, and we are part of that community and we have a good working relationship with the city."
He doesn't believe the RM should have to consider raising taxes to accommodate all of the infrastructure. They also want decommissioning plans for when the facility reaches the end of its life cycle or if it fails.
They also want to see plans for weed control, general public safety, and soil analysis before and after the project.
"Every farmer out there is working hard to look after their land and protect it and keep the weeds off of it. Well, when these types of outfits come in, we're going to make sure that they toe the line as well."
The bylaw and community plan changes would not apply to a landowner who wants to have solar panels on their farm, unless they're selling power.
The RM hosted a public information session in April 2023 with Jason Schneider, the reeve of the RM of Vulcan in Alberta. He chronicled some of the challenges that they have encountered dealing with wind power turbines, and how the situation has become progressively worse after positive initial experiences.
Schneider's chronicles played a role in the Estevan RM's decision to introduce this bylaw.
"Certainly, we're trying to prevent that from happening here," said LeBlanc. "But the other part of this equation is Vulcan, Alberta, doesn't have to deal with SaskPower, and where we are, our RM has lots of experience dealing with SaskPower."
In this instance, SaskPower purchased the land for the solar facility, and it's a different company coming in to build the solar power plant. LeBlanc said other communities are looking to come in, purchase land and complete more projects.
The RM has already spoken with other solar companies about this bylaw. LeBlanc said not all companies are a problem, but some of them will get their grants and their federal money, get the project partially completed and then sell out to another company
"Pretty soon [instead of] the original company that started the project it might be four companies ... that ended the project, and you're stuck with this mess out on your property that you have to clean up," said LeBlanc.
The RM is also trying to get clarity from the provincial government on how it will benefit from these projects and how it will collect taxes.
RM residents have been thanking the council for taking these steps, he said. Some residents have voiced concerns on why this is happening, but they understand when they hear the rationale.
"There has really been no push-back or any concerns from any of the companies that want to enter in."
LeBlanc expects the bylaw amendments and the changes to the community plan will be passed at the Feb. 28 meeting. If people have concerns, they are asked to bring them to the meeting.
