US town rejects solar amid amorphous fears, fulfils every possible stereotype

CleanTechnica

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The small US town of Woodland, North Carolina, has rejected a proposed solar project amidst fears of cancer, plant health, and sucking up all the sun’s energy.

In what reads more like a piece from The Onion, the small town of Woodland, boasting a population of around 800 people, not only rejected the proposed Strata Solar Company solar farm, but also voted for a complete moratorium on solar farms.

This in and of itself may not seem the most newsworthy of stories, until you dive into some of the fears raised by attendees at the meeting that impacted the vote.

Jane Mann, a local native and a retired Northampton science teacher, spoke at the meeting, raising her concerns that the solar panels were drawing sunlight away from nearby plants. Her own personal investigation had resulted in the discovery of plants which had apparently not received enough sunlight because of existing solar farms.

She capped off her comments by questioning the high number of cancer deaths in the area, exclaiming that no one could tell her that solar panels didn’t cause cancer.

“I want to know what’s going to happen,” she said. “I want information. Enough is enough. I don’t see the profit for the town. People come with hidden agendas. Until we can find if anything is going to damage this community, we shouldn’t sign any paper.”

Bobby Mann, presumably Jane’s husband, was concerned that the solar farms would suck up all the energy from the sun — and also that businesses would not come to Woodland, though whether the two thoughts were connected is relatively unclear.

Several Strata Solar Company representatives were in attendance, including Brent Niemann, who spoke to the meeting and assured them that, “The panels don’t draw additional sunlight” and “There are no toxic materials on site.”

The mayor called for a vote, and the solar farm was rejected, 3-1 against.

Source: CleanTechnica. Reproduced with permission.