Residents wanting solar panels face stumbling blocks

Editor’s Note: This story has been corrected. We previously wrote that Hancock’s new solar and wind ordinance entirely prohibits industrial solar, but that isn’t the case. It restricts industrial solar to I-1 industrial districts and requires permits. We apologize for the confusion.

Renewable energy advocates say that homeowners can save money on electricity by installing solar panels, but there are stumbling blocks to using solar panels in the Keweenaw area. They include state distributed-generation regulations, net metering caps set by electric utilities and local zoning ordinances regulating installation of solar panels.

Net metering is an electricity billing tool that uses the electric grid to “store” excess energy produced by an individual’s solar panel system. Under net metering, the value of the energy produced by solar panels that a homeowner doesn’t use is credited back to their electric bill.

Net metering was designed to encourage the adoption of solar energy.  The system was pioneered in the United States as a way to help use solar and wind to provide electricity. It enables customers who generate their own power to receive credit for the electricity they contribute to the grid.  

A report by the Michigan State University Extension Service calls net metering “the gold standard” for solar billing in the U.S. According to the report, it was one of the main reasons the number of solar installations in Michigan quintupled between 2011 and 2018.

In 2018, Michigan’s Public Service Commission replaced net metering with a distributed generation program. Using distributed generation, electric utilities can credit less to residents who send their excess solar energy to the grid.

The Upper Peninsula Power Company (UPPCO), Detroit Energy (DTE), Consumers Energy and some other electric utilities and co-ops in Michigan are using the distributed generation program.

Solar Caps

State law does not prevent electric companies from setting caps on the amount of solar energy generation eligible for credit,

UPPCO, which serves the Keweenaw peninsula, recently raised its cap to 3.5%. That means that the most a customer with solar panels can contribute to the grid for credit is 3.5% of peak demand or load and capacity. 

Peak demand is the highest amount of electricity demand within a particular period of time. Load is the total electrical power being removed by the users of the grid. Capacity is the maximum output an electricity generator can physically produce, measured in megawatts.

There’s a thornier problem facing homeowners who want to install solar panels in our area. They say they have been told that the cap has been met in the UP as a region, so no more solar panel installations are eligible for the credit.

UPPCO spokesperson Brett French says that is not true.

“We have not reached the cap, and we are accepting applications,” he said in a phone interview.

Dr. Elizabeth Benyi

Dr. Elizabeth Benyi, who lives near Calumet, talked to her neighbors and got a few of them interested in installing solar panels.

“But again, when it came to permitting, they were denied because of the cap on solar,” she says.

An osteopathic physician and surgeon, Benyi lived in L’Anse for 10 years before she moved to Calumet. She wanted to get solar panels installed on her house in L’Anse. She says Blue Earth Solar tried to get permits for the installation but were refused. They were told that the solar cap had been met in the UP, so no more solar projects that tied into the power grid were allowed.  

Pending Legislation

Benyi has been working for two years to help get legislation passed to get rid of the solar cap. First introduced in 2021 by Greg Markkanen, state representative for the legislative district that includes the Keweenaw, it would have eliminated the solar cap.

“But to no avail,” Benyi said.

New bills recently introduced by both Representative Markkanen and State Senator Ed McBroom, who also represents the Keweenaw, would remove the cap on solar energy credits.

Michigan State Rep. Greg Markkanen at a town hall event in Ontonagon. Photo by Joshua Vissers.

“I am very passionate about this issue,” said Markkanen in a phone interview. “We need to lift the cap and give people a choice. Many states near Michigan don’t have a cap.”

McBroom agrees.

“The system that we have in this state is rigged against controlling costs for individual consumers,” he said in a phone interview. “That’s unfair. The system isn’t working to the benefit of the people. Our high electric bills are stifling our economy.”

“The cap does discourage people from installing solar,” says Allan Baker, who has installed solar panels on the sides of the apartment building he owns in Houghton.

Senator McBroom has introduced two bills in the Michigan Senate. One would remove the solar cap. The other would bring back net metering and make it easier to establish community solar systems.

“Small-scale, local solar projects will be particularly useful to residents, providing an opportunity to independently produce energy for themselves and their neighbors, and providing savings on energy bills for those who subscribe,” the senator said.

According to the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy, Michigan currently does not have enabling legislation for community solar, so community solar programs in Michigan must be developed and managed through a local electric utility.

Escanaba and L’Anse have both established community solar systems. Those municipalities are served by their own, local electric utilities, not by UPPCO, Senator McBroom pointed out. L'Anse is served by L'Anse, Michigan Electric Utility, a municipally-owned organization.  The City of Escanaba owns its own electric utility.

The senator thinks the legislation removing the cap and enabling community solar will pass. He’s less confident about bringing back net metering.

“The big utilities like UPPCO have powerful lobbies,” he explained.

Zoning Issues

As if caps on solar weren’t enough of a roadblock, there are zoning ordinances that severely regulate installation of solar panels.

The Michigan Zoning Enabling Act requires all zoning to be based on a master plan. The master plan therefore establishes the community’s formal policy position on solar energy development. Roof-mounted solar panels are allowed in most zoning jurisdictions in Michigan, according to an MSU Extension Service report.

The City of Hancock just passed a zoning ordinance regulating the development and use of solar and wind energy. The ordinance permits private, residential solar but limits “industrial” solar – systems designed for sale of power generated to off-site consumers – to the I-1 industrial district. This includes solar farms or gardens, which are community systems.

Calumet and Stanton Township have no zoning ordinances prohibiting solar panels, although Stanton Township Supervisor Marty Rajala said, “My personal opinion, not the township’s, is that anyone dumb enough to place a solar panel in our area, where the sun shines 15% of the year, should be allowed to throw their own money away and not be subsidized by the government.”

Houghton permits solar panels, subject to the city’s zoning ordinance, according to City Manager Eric Waara.

Adams, Franklin, Portage and Chassell Townships did not respond to questions about zoning ordinances regulating solar panels.

All About Money

What’s causing the ongoing conflict that has the solar industry and environmentalists on one side and utility companies and local zoning boards on the other?

It seems to be all about money.

“The cap has always been an artificial construct given to the utilities to help them make more money,” says Senator McBroom.

“UPPCO doesn’t have the best interests of the people at heart,” Representative Markkanen remarked. “It is a private, for-profit company with its eye on the bottom line and making money for its shareholders.”

If you’re interested in republishing this story, please email us at editor@copperbeacon.org.

More News

UPPCO, L’Anse star in Goliath v. David

The Upper Peninsula Power Company has filed with the Michigan Supreme Court over the appeal on a case first heard by Judge Charles Goodman in Baraga County Circuit Court. UPPCO lost their case against the Village of L’Anse, wherein they asserted the village was stealing their customers through unlawful means, and denying a franchise unreasonably.

If this case mystifies you a little, you are not alone. Judge Amy Ronayne Krause from the Court of Appeals said the case was interesting but “a little bit complicated” during the oral arguments.

UPPCO sued L’Anse in August of 2018, after being informed their non-exclusive franchise to serve customers in the Dynamite Hill industrial area of L’Anse was not to be renewed. The franchise had a 30-year term. The village was willing and able to serve those customers on the municipal grid at a lower rate, which it was not able to do previously when it annexed the area.

UPPCO lawyers argued that ending the franchise was arbitrary, and that the municipality couldn’t do it without citing a reason, like a health or safety concern. They alleged that L’Anse village officials were behaving dishonestly in order to strip UPPCO of customers, with help from WPPI Energy, who L’Anse contracts with for services.

The Daily Mining Gazette reported in October 2018 that three customers, L’Anse Manufacturing, Collins Brothers Sawmill, and the village water tower, had been switched to the village power supply already. President of L’Anse Manufacturing, Mark Massicotte, said the village power costs were lower and lend a competitive edge to his business. He had worked with UPPCO for twelve years, but requested a transfer to village power in 2016.

The DMG also reported that the village agreed not to switch any more customers over until the trial concluded. That was 28 months ago.

After UPPCO filed two amended complaints days before scheduled court appearances, they eventually lost the case in June of 2019. They filed an appeal the following July, which was decided, again against UPPCO, in November 2020.

If you’ve never been in a courtroom, or if you’re into courtroom drama, the oral arguments are worth listening to. They’re available on the Michigan courts website. The clerk opens with some announcements, and then you have Jason T. Hanselman representing UPPCO, Peter H. Ellsworth representing the Village of L’Anse, and Judges Jansen, Hood and Krause asking questions.

If you aren’t into hearing the entire thing, listen to Ellsworth’s final statement. Other than blatant use of metaphor like “declared war”, I can’t disagree with his statements, based on available evidence. I have read the Bundo and Delmarva cases, too. Of course, I am not a judge or lawyer, either.

And he points out the importance of this case. If municipalities can’t end a franchise with UPPCO, then what choice do consumers have?

I’ll share the entire opinion from the appellate judges, but I think the crux of the issue is really on the last page.

Hope isn’t admissible in court. Here’s the rest of the judge’s opinion.

Twelve wind turbines planned for Houghton County

Twelve wind turbines are being planned for locations in Stanton and Adams Townships, southwest of Houghton. The project, named Scotia Wind, is being developed by Circle Power, a small company based in southern Michigan.

Circle Power is picking up a project that Farm Wind Energy attempted in 2015, but later abandoned. The Scotia Wind turbines are planned for locations that comply with the Adams Township ordinances, whereas Farm Wind Energy was pressing the township to change the ordinance in a way that would allow them to put a turbine on top of Whealkate Bluff, and other locations closer to residences.

“He wasn’t an experienced developer, and he didn’t necessarily understand how people might react,” Jordan Roberts, co-founder of Circle Power, said.

Roberts said about the only thing they took from the previous project was the wind measurement data that they had. He said that Circle Power is trying to be better about engaging with the township, too.

“We were there on a monthly basis,” he said. “Prior to, you know, the coronavirus situation.”

The Adams Township ordinance requires that turbines be set back at least 3,000 feet from the nearest property line, and that sound levels at the nearest property line cannot exceed 55 decibels. The average refrigerator makes about 55 decibels of sound when it is running. The Scotia Wind project is being developed to be on active timberland land, owned by Lake Superior Timberlands, LLC.

This is a screenshot from “The Wind Prospector” a site run by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. It shows the area where the turbines will be built is in the light green area, which is labeled as “6.5 to 7 m/s” on the legend. Dark green and blue have speeds reduced at .5 m/s intervals.

Stanton Township does not yet have a wind ordinance, but is working on developing and passing one. Township supervisor John Mattila said it will probably look quite similar to the Adams Township ordinance, as they intend to use it as a template.

Below is a copy of the Adams Township Wind Turbine Power Generation Ordinance, and an application. the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service “Land-Based Wind Energy Guidelines” the ordinance refers to are available here.

Circle Power has not filed for permits with the township yet. Roberts said that they will engage with the permit process once they’re ready.

“We’ve been doing environmental surveys for several years,” Roberts said. “You know, birds, wetlands, our wind studies, are ongoing.”

At the Adams Township meeting on Monday, Christopher Moore, another Circle Power co-founder, shared a map that showed the routes of roads that would need to be constructed or improved to build the turbines. Township officials said it would be shared online, but is not yet available on their website. This is a screen capture from the Zoom meeting.

The turbine’s access road would initially follow the path of the ATC transmission line, before splitting to reach the turbines.

Roberts said he believed there would be “significant” tax generation for the local municipalities and schools, but wasn’t ready to release any numbers. He said they would be supplied to the townships first.

Paperwork filed with the American Transmission Company shows the turbines Scotia Wind is planned to use are Siemens Gamesa 5.0-145 (Type 3) turbines, which have a total height, including blade length, of about 808 feet. The project is intended to generate a maximum of just under 40 megawatts of renewable energy. Agreements for that energy have already been signed by UPPCO.

The introduction of turbines in Houghton County will not impact electric rates for nearby residents. Rates are set through a process through the Michigan Public Service Commission.

“We understand the issue of rates in the area,” Roberts said. “We’re not involved in the rate-making process...”

During the controversy surrounding the now-abandoned Summit Lake Wind Project by RES in L’Anse Township, the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Tribal Council passed a resolution opposing wind energy generation within their ceded territory.

Moore has met with the Tribal Council and other individuals from the KBIC to discuss the impacts and concerns of the project, according to Jeffrey Loman. Loman was involved in protesting the construction of the Summit Lake Wind Farm, but thinks it’s unlikely the turbines in Houghton County will be halted.

On the other hand, Roberts said it will likely be a while before construction can begin.

“We think this is a great location for a wind farm, and we think a bunch of the pieces are falling in place,” Roberts said. “But it’s certainly not a done deal.”

Comments on original story

Daryl Self

Don't you dare destroy that beautiful landscape with bird choppers.

Bill manderfield

Wind is bad, it takes more energy than it gives. They claim to pay taxes but they always find loopholes and don't pay any property tax. I live here I don't want windmills churning at all hours of the day and night. They kill birds constantly and the windmills will not lower anyone's bills. People think about this and fight.

Paul Maki

Wind and Solar are the future for our energy needs. Utilities that promote renewable energy are able to promote lower rates in the end.