65.2

Risk Grade

Poor

Georgia's highest solar saturation county in this batch; D-grade driven almost entirely by very high saturation score (80); multiple operating farms straining transmission capacity; ordinance formalization underway signals increased future compliance requirements

Assessment Snapshot

Population

22529

State Rank

#73

Compliance

50%

Trajectory

Moratorium Status

✓ No Active Moratorium

No specific moratorium information available.

Ordinance & Regulations

Setback Requirements

200 ft from property lines; 500 ft from occupied dwellings; vegetative screening required per recent CUP conditions

Zoning Mechanism

CUP from Burke County Board of Commissioners; planning commission review; public hearing required; increasingly detailed review process

Acreage Caps

No formal cap; cumulative saturation under policy review

Density Caps

Under consideration as of 2024

Spacing Rules

Not formally codified; addressed case-by-case

Size Restrictions

None formal; project-by-project

Board Sentiment & Political Risk

Sentiment Analysis

Mixed; economic benefits acknowledged; growing concern over visual and land-use saturation; Plant Vogtle adjacency limits transmission capacity for additional solar

Basis for Assessment

Augusta Chronicle; Burke County BOC minutes 2021-2024; WRDW Augusta coverage

Political Risk Factors

Increasing; commission managing saturation concerns; some community discussion about cumulative impact; not ideological opposition but capacity-driven caution

Board Members

[Board of Commissioners] | See county website | Non-Partisan | Term Expires: Unknown

Grid, Utilities & State Context

Grid Operator

SERC / Georgia Power (Southern Company) — high interconnection queue congestion in Burke County

Utilities

Georgia Power, Jefferson Energy Cooperative (JEC)

State Permitting Process

County zoning authority; no state solar preemption; conditional use permit typically required for utility-scale (>1 MW)

State Incentives

Federal ITC eligible; no Georgia state solar tax credit; Georgia Power IRP solar procurement program

Development Activity

Active/Completed Projects

7 utility-scale projects (~350+ MW combined) 2016-2024; includes Palmetto Solar (~100 MW), Burke County Solar (~75 MW), Waynesboro Solar (~60 MW), additional 4 projects 2020-2024

Denied/Withdrawn Projects

1 project deferred pending ordinance clarification (2023); not formal denial

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Burke County, GA — Solar Development Risk Assessment