Solar permitting — Caroline County, Maryland
211 indexed meetings (11 energy-related), 2 news items, 5 known opposition groups.
Rural Eastern Shore; agricultural county; flat terrain favorable for solar; limited regulatory framework; grow. Permitting: County Board of Appeals/Board of Commissioners: Special Exception or Conditional Use Permi; 150-ft max / 100-…
Key driver: Rural Eastern Shore; agricultural county; flat terrain favorable for solar; limited regulatory framework; growing solar interest
Permitting process
Local permitting pathway
County Board of Appeals/Board of Commissioners: Special Exception or Conditional Use Permit in applicable zoning district.
Setbacks & buffers
State floor per HB1036/SB931 (eff. Jul 1 2025): ≤100 ft from property lines; ≤150 ft from non-participating residences. No county-specific setbacks above state floor.
Spacing requirements
None codified
Size restrictions
None codified; managed via CUP/SUP conditions
Penalties & bonding
No penalties or adjustments. Standard CUP/SUP process.
State-level permits & approvals
Local county zoning permit: conditional use or special exception at county level; no uniform statewide solar permitting standard. PPRP (Power Plant Research Program, MD DNR): environmental review for generating facilities ≥70 MW; PSC CPCN required for projects ≥70 MW. Projects <70 MW: county-level permitting only. No statewide preemption of local solar ordinances. Net metering: systems up to 2 MW (residential up to 2× annual load). All MD in PJM territory. Maryland has the largest solar carve-out in the U.S. at 14.5% by 2028 (MD Code, PUC §7-703).
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State policy & grid context
State RPS & clean energy policy
50% by 2030 (14.5% solar carve-out) | Clean Energy Jobs Act (2019) + CESA (2022) | Md. Code Ann. PUA §7-703
State incentive programs
Maryland Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS): 50% by 2030; solar carve-out 14.5% by 2028 — drives strong SREC demand. Maryland SREC market: PSC-administered; ~$50-80/SREC 2023-2024 for Tier 1 Maryland SRECs. Maryland Solar Access Program (Brighter Tomorrow Act 2024): $750/kW up to $7,500 for income-qualifying residential customers. Maryland Community Solar: community solar program active statewide. Maryland PSC: approval required for utility-owned solar; IPP projects via county/local process. Utility: BGE (Eversource) serves Baltimore metro; Pepco serves Montgomery/PG County; Delmarva Power serves Eastern Shore; SMECO serves Southern MD; Potomac Edison (FirstEnergy) serves western MD.
Grid & interconnection
PJM / Delmarva Power (Exelon) transmission zone
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Battery storage (BESS) P1 State-Default Permitting
No confirmed county BESS ordinance.
Local BESS ordinances & bylaws
Tracked storage projects
County-level battery-storage status, safety requirements, and projects — each linked to a primary source.
Community opposition P1 4 tracked
Organized opposition signals on record for this county — petitions, community groups, and oppositional coverage — each linked to its primary source.
- Commissioners consider modifying solar cap, sign petition to roll back state law Storage
- Last Updated: March 2022 Caroline County Solar and Wind Zoning Wind
- Commissioners consider modifying solar cap, sign petition to roll back state law Storage
- County Commissioners work toward opposition to House Bill 1036 (Renewable Energy Certainty Act) Storage
SitePath maintains the most complete community-opposition dataset available, refreshed continuously from primary sources.
Subscriber intel Subscribers
Researched for this county and available with a subscription:
- 🔒Project track record
- 🔒Developer intelligence
- 🔒Community & board sentiment
- 🔒Governing board
- 🔒Sentiment rollup
Energy-related meetings & dockets P1
Halo color = sentiment of the relevant agenda excerpt: green positive, yellow neutral, red negative.
- 2026-02-03 County BoardSolar
Discussion of proposed solar farm development in Caroline County
- 2026-01-13 County BoardSolar
The Hobbs Road Landfill Solar Project –Landscape & Maintenance Agreement was approved
State PSC dockets P1
No tracked activity yet — coverage expands weekly.
Local news P3
- 2025-08-05 Farmers Concernedmaryland Solar Law
- 2025-08-05 Why Farmers Concerned Solar Legislation 045441312
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