On April 23, the Shelby County Plan Commission is due to discuss calling for a moratorium on construction of any new large-scale solar power facilities.

Commission member Kevin Carson suggested the moratorium during the Plan Commission's meeting Tuesday evening.

His comment set off a long discussion among the members about the issue and follows approval earlier this month of a large-scale solar farm to be built by Ranger Power northeast of Shelbyville.

“So now we're using 1,725 acres, so basically 3 square miles. I don't think we fathomed that, and I think, I'm aware that we've set, if we don't review it, we've set a precedent that Shelby County could be overrun by solar fields,” Carson said.

Desiree Calderella, executive director of the County Plan Commission, said the members could not vote on the issue Tuesday because a moratorium on solar farms wasn't on their agenda.

Also, a final decision would be up to the Shelby County Commissioners, noted Plan Commission member Terry Smith, who's also on the Shelby County Council.

However the Plan Commission could vote to render an advisory opinion to the commissioners, he said.

Commission Chairman Doug Warnecke cautioned that adding a moratorium to the county's recently-approved solar power ordinance would not necessarily be the final word to prevent future solar farms.

“I don't have any problem with a moratorium, if we choose to go down that path, but what everybody's got to understand is, no matter what we do in that ordinance, somebody can come in and do away with it. That's why it ended up in front of the Board of Zoning Appeals in the first place,” he said.

Ranger Power went to the county zoning appeals board following passage of the county's solar ordinance by the County Commissioners in April last year.

The County Plan Commission's next monthly meeting, when a possible solar farm moratorium is to be discussed, is scheduled for 7 p.m on April 23.

Meetings are held in the Court House Annex, 25 W. Polk St.