County considers solar, winds projects on prime farmland.

The D’Arrigo Bros. headquarters in Spreckels is a large complex with offices and a cooling facility. Behind it, hundreds of acres of farmland stretch into the distance.

In the coming months, over 15 acres of that 284-acre parcel will become another kind of farm when D’Arrigo installs solar panels. The Monterey County Planning Department issued the company a permit on Jan. 15, amid questions about whether solar is a suitable land use for farmland.

“The county wrestled terribly with this,” Planner Jacqueline Onciano told the county Agricultural Advisory Committee at a Jan. 28 meeting. “As far as our records show, this is prime ag land. Fifteen acres is a lot to us.” (Steve DeLorimier, a vice president at D’Arrigo and member of the ag advisory committee, recused himself from the discussion. He did not return calls requesting comment.)

Farmers are divided over converting farmland to energy projects. “This issue has torn a lot of farm bureaus apart,” Monterey County Farm Bureau President Norm Groot told the committee. “It’s pitted farmer against farmer.”

Anticipating similar proposals in the future, county planners are working on a renewable energy ordinance for the county which will guide mid-sized solar and wind projects. They expect such projects to increase in number to help meet the mandate of SB 350, which took effect Jan. 1 and requires that by 2030, at least half of the state’s electricity come from renewable sources.

It’s not clear what D’Arrigo will do with the energy produced by the solar farm.