Solar Workshop addresses planning, regulating, and permitting.
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Press Release Summary:
As part of the Solar Outreach Partnership, the Centralina Council of Governments is hosting a free solar energy workshop, Wednesday, July 30, from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. Presenters will offer suggestions on how to improve and streamline the permitting process in ways that benefit the permitting authority, as well as solar installers and their customers. Morning session will cover Solar Codes and Standards and afternoon session will address Solar Permitting Process.
Original Press Release:
Planning, Regulating, Permitting and Inspection Workshop
As part of the Solar Outreach Partnership, the Centralina Council of Governments is hosting a free solar energy workshop, Wednesday, July 30, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 pm, Charles Mack Citizen Center, 215 North Main Street, Mooresville NC 28115.
The Interstate Renewable Energy Council, ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability USA (ICLEIUSA), and the Solar Foundation will provide assistance to local government officials in the Charlotte, North Carolina region who are interested in learning about ways to improve their solar zoning codes and permitting processes for solar facilities.
Presenters will offer suggestions on how to improve and streamline the permitting process in ways that benefit the permitting authority, as well as solar installers and their customers. After the workshop, Centralina Council of Governments and the Solar Outreach Partnership will be available on an on-going basis to provide one-on-one assistance to city and county officials interested in pursuing changes to their solar codes and standards and/or solar permitting polices and processes.
Register here to reserve your spot!
Workshop Agenda
8:30 a.m - Check-in or registration for morning session*
9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. - Solar Codes and Standards:Â the morning session will cover solar codes and standards in North Carolina, with particular attention to achieving regulatory goals, developing appropriate ordinances and enforcement. Presenter: Alex Wynn, The Solar Foundation.
12:30 p.m. - Check-in or registration for afternoon session*
1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. - Solar Permitting Process:Â the afternoon session will cover the three primary components of the solar permitting process-the pre-application stage, application submittal, and facility inspection. Presenters: Sky Stanfield, Erica Schroeder McConnell, Keyes, Fox & Wiedman LLP.
Register
Attendees are encouraged to come for the full day, but if you want to attend only one session you can sign up for the sessions separately on the registration page.
*Space is limited to 60 participants for each workshop
PRESENTERS for the series are Sky Stanfield, Erica Schroeder McConnell and Alex Winn, well-known experts in the permitting, inspection and zoning space.
Sky StanfieldSky Stanfield is Of Counsel with the law firm of Keyes, Fox & Wiedman, LLP in Oakland, California. Ms. Stanfield's practice focuses on the intersection between renewable energy regulation and environmental and land use law, with a particular focus on regulatory policy implementation, compliance and permitting processes. On behalf of IREC, Ms. Stanfield works to improve the efficiency and efficacy of the permitting process for distributed generation solar systems. She also is a leading voice for the improvement of interconnection standards and their interaction with the procurement and land use permitting processes in California.
Erica Schroeder Erica Schroeder McConnell joined Keyes, Fox & Wiedman as an Associate in September 2010. Ms. McConnell is deeply involved in IREC's efforts to investigate and improve permitting processes for renewable energy systems, a critical component to supporting renewable energy development nationwide. In addition, Ms. McConnell represents IREC in state-level rulemakings on many topic areas essential to building sustainable markets for renewable energy including net metering rules, interconnection standards, and shared renewable energy, sometimes called community renewables.
Alexander Winn works on many of The Solar Foundation's key projects, including the SunShot Solar Outreach Partnership program which aims to remove solar market barriers and encourage solar deployment among local governments and communities. He managed the design and development of the State Solar Jobs Map. Before joining the Foundation, Alexander was an integral member of the George Washington University Solar Institute since its formation. There, he managed the Institute's public outreach, including the Annual Solar Symposium, online communications, and various research efforts. He recently worked to support the government affairs team of the Solar Energy Industries Association, particularly on regulatory issues related to electricity transmission and public lands. Alexander earned a Master in Public Administration with a concentration in Public-Private Policy and Management and a bachelor's degree in Political Science from the George Washington University.
About The Solar Outreach Partnership
The Solar Outreach Partnership (SolarOPs) is designed to help accelerate solar energy adoption on the local level by providing timely and actionable information to local governments. Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) SunShot Initiative, SolarOPs achieves its goals through a mix of educational workshops, peer-to-peer sharing opportunities, research-based reports, and online resources. The International City/County Management Association (ICMA) and ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability USA coordinates the work of Solar Outreach Partnership teams, including The Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC), Meister Consultants Group, the North Carolina Solar Center (NCSC), the Solar Electric Power Association (SEPA), and The Solar Foundation (TSF).
About ICLEI USA
ICLEI USA is a vibrant network of over 450 local government members across 47 states and the District of Columbia. We provide cutting-edge tools, resources and technical assistance in emissions management, climate adaptation, resource efficiency and renewable energy planning to local governments to support the most informed decisions around creating sustainable, healthy, prosperous and resilient communities. For more information, please visit icleiusa.orgÂ
About IREC
IREC believes clean energy is critical to achieving a sustainable and economically strong future. To pave this clean energy path, IREC works to expand consumer access to clean energy; generates information and objective analysis grounded in best practices and standards; and leads programs to build a quality clean energy workforce, including a unique credentialing program for training programs and instructors. A not-for-profit organization since 1982, IREC's programs and policies have benefitted energy consumers, policymakers, utilities and the clean energy industry. As of July 2013, IREC is an accredited American National Standards Developer. For more information, visit http://www.irecusa.org
