Blandford Board Moves Toward Six-Month Solar Moratorium, Eyes Town Meeting Vote

BLANDFORD -- October 6, 2025, Blandford Select Board takes first steps toward a temporary solar moratorium amid surge in large-scale applications. Meeting Monday with only two of its three members present, the board heard from KP Law attorney John Eichmann that a six-month zoning moratorium on large-scale solar facilities and battery energy storage systems is legally viable but would require a two-thirds town meeting vote and attorney general approval under MGL Chapter 40, Section 32. Eichmann cautioned that because Blandford already has a solar zoning bylaw, the attorney general will demand documented planning justification for the pause, telling the board, "You need to identify the impacts of these solar facilities that were unanticipated." The town's agricultural district, covering roughly 90 percent of Blandford's land area, currently allows large-scale solar by special permit with minimal geographic restriction, and board members noted two existing installations have cleared close to 200 acres of forest. The town has appropriated $200,000 for a solar study committee, which is scheduled to meet Wednesday. The board also approved an updated personnel policy unanimously and authorized $14,200 to engineering firm Weston Sampson to assess a new potential water department site on North Blandford Road.