ACADIA PARISH — The Acadia Parish Police Jury quickly approved the engineer report for the Shallow Lake Solar project during its most recent meeting, moving the large-scale renewable energy development one step closer to construction.
“It really was just a matter of conforming to the regulations that Acadia Parish put in place specifically for projects like Shallow Lake that we're here to talk about today,” said Eric Wedesky, senior project developer with IBV Energy Partners.
Wedesky said the project’s design had to meet several parish ordinances related to land use and environmental protection. “We had to conform to the ordinance that Acadia Parish has on the books,” he said. “That includes setbacks from homes, property lines, and wetlands, and we cannot impact any wetlands or flood zones with our projects.”
Police Jury President Beau Petitjean said parish leaders are focused on balancing economic development with protecting local property owners and infrastructure.
“I think realizing that the parish isn't here to tell anyone what they can or can't do on their piece of property,” Petitjean said. “But what we do is protect the residents, and we also protect the drainage and infrastructure around the project that the landowner and vendor are trying to do with solar. That’s our job, that’s our responsibility.”
With the engineer report now approved, the Shallow Lake Solar project continues to move forward as Acadia Parish looks to expand its footprint in renewable energy while ensuring local safeguards remain in place.
