On August 12th, DeWitt County hosted a siting permit hearing for the Prairie Flats Solar Farm, that in the end was ultimately denied. 

Joe Witte, DeWitt County Board Chair, explains that after having some more time to review, the county got the chance for a do-over. At the August Full Board Meeting, they had a motion to reconsider the denial of the siting permit for Prairie Flats, and it was approved in a seven-to-four vote. 

One reservation regarding the solar farm was brought up by Board Member Patrick Ryan, who was concerned about unregulated parts from adversarial nations like China. He referenced possible cybersecurity issues; however, the board decided to leave those issues to the Federal Authorities. 

Witte feels that the board did not do their due diligence when it came to outlining why the siting permit was denied, which could lead to a weak defense were the county to be sued. 

The County expects more solar applications to come in the future, and Witte says each one can be vastly different.