Aiken County Council voted unanimously on Sept. 15 to limit where new power-generation plants can be built across the county, tightening zoning rules that had previously let facilities powered by any energy source locate in six different districts.
Under the new ordinance, fossil-fuel power plants burning natural gas or coal may now only be located in areas zoned Industrial Development, and even there they are permitted conditionally rather than by right. Aiken County currently has one fossil-fuel plant, Urquhart Station, in the Beech Island area.
The changes create a tiered system for different power sources. Hydroelectric plants can locate in Urban Development, Limited Development or Industrial Development zones. Renewable-energy facilities, including solar farms, have the widest reach, remaining eligible for five zoning categories including Rural Development and Rural Community. Nuclear power plants are now barred from every zoning district in the county. Power transmission substations and water storage or treatment facilities switched from being allowed by right to requiring conditional approval in all districts.
The council’s action followed more than three months of review. In May, council members asked the county Planning Commission to weigh in on whether power plants should remain an allowable use in areas zoned Rural Development. The Planning Commission held a public hearing and voted unanimously in June to recommend the amendments, which the county’s Planning and Development Department had drafted, before sending the package back to council for final approval.
The county currently counts four solar-energy facilities in the pipeline: one already operating, two under construction and one approved, all sited in Rural Development or Planned Use districts under the previous rules.
All nine county council members were present for the Sept. 15 meeting, where they also approved renaming the county’s wastewater treatment facility and department, and passed a resolution naming the newly rebuilt county recreation center in the Graniteville and Warrenville area in honor of Minnie Palmore, described as the first Black teacher in Aiken County, and John Hatney, the original caretaker of the recreation center property.
