WINCHESTER — A renewable energy company has asked local government officials to address utility-scale solar farms in the zoning regulations as it moves forward on a $242 million, 200-megawatt project.
The Riverstart Solar Park, first announced in 2018, would include 670,000 photovoltaic solar panels on 1,400 acres in southwest Randolph County and produce enough energy to power about 37,000 households — the largest such project in the state.
The county said in a news release that it is poised to be a leader of renewable energy in Indiana — it's already home to an ethanol plant and a wind farm that is doubling in size — and an environmental group says the solar farm could attract tourists if it is developed to help wildlife, including pollinators like birds and bees.
But even if it doesn't attract visitors, the project will benefit the local economy in several ways.
More: Randolph County chosen as site for mega solar park
For size comparison purposes, if you are familiar with the Indianapolis International Airport's solar farm (hailed as the largest solar farm on any airport in the world), its capacity is about 20 MW, or a tenth the size of Riverstart.
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