STAND. COM. REP. NO.  452-08

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2008

RE:   H.B. No. 2502

      H.D. 1

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2008

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Energy & Environmental Protection, to which was referred H.B. No. 2502 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO SOLAR ENERGY,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to include a solar energy facility as a permitted use within the agricultural district on land with soil classified as overall (master) productivity rating class D or E by the land study bureau's detailed land classification.

     The Hawaii Solar Energy Association, Hawaii Renewable Energy Alliance, Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc., Maui Electric Company, Hawaii Electric Light Company, Sopogy, Inc., Castle & Cooke Hawaii, and Dowling Company, Inc., testified in support of this bill.  The Department of Agriculture provided comments.

     Your Committee finds that lands classified as overall (master) productivity rating class D or E are not necessarily unfit for agricultural use.  To protect productive agricultural land, your Committee has amended this bill by further limiting solar energy facilities to land:

(1)  When the total acreage to be used by the solar energy facility is ten acres or one percent of the parcel, whichever is less;

(2)  That is located in the vicinity of an existing electrical transmission and distribution system; and

(3)  That can generate between:

(i)  Eight and fourteen kWh/m2/day (hours per day when array is providing peak output) based on solar insolation maps on a two-axis tracking flat plate; or

(ii) Five and fourteen kWh/m2/day (hours per day when concentrator is providing peak output) based on solar insolation maps on a two-axis tracking concentrator system.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Energy & Environmental Protection that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2502, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2502, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committees on Water, Land, Ocean Resources & Hawaiian Affairs and Agriculture.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Energy & Environmental Protection,

____________________________

HERMINA MORITA, Chair