A profit-sharing solar power plant in Sinan-gun, South Jeolla Province [Yonhap]
A profit-sharing solar power plant in Sinan-gun, South Jeolla Province [Yonhap]

With national caps now set on the minimum distances required between solar power facilities and surrounding areas, local governments that have imposed stricter standards must ease their rules to fall within the new limits.

A separate legislative reorganization will split the existing law governing both new and renewable energy into two distinct statutes — one covering renewable energy and another covering the hydrogen economy — with their respective enforcement decrees revised accordingly to eliminate regulatory confusion caused by the combined framework.

The Ministry of Climate, Environment and Energy said Tuesday that the Cabinet approved an amendment to the enforcement decree of the Act on the Promotion of the Development, Use and Diffusion of New and Renewable Energy.

The amendment spells out matters delegated by the revised Renewable Energy Development, Use and Diffusion Promotion Act, which was amended in March and takes effect Sept. 18.

The key change establishes national-level caps on setback distances for renewable energy facilities — requirements that had previously varied widely across local governments.

Of the country's 228 basic local governments, 129 have set setback distances through local ordinances, but the gaps are wide: solar facilities face requirements ranging from 100 to 1,000 meters, while wind facilities face requirements of 100 to 2,000 meters depending on the jurisdiction.

The government gathered input from local governments, power developers, industry associations and farmers' groups, then set the following caps: local governments may require solar power facilities to be sited no more than 200 meters from residential areas — defined as areas with at least five housing units — and may not impose any setback requirement from roads.

For wind power facilities, local governments may set setback distances of up to 1,500 meters from residential areas with at least five housing units, and up to 500 meters from roads. A minimum setback equal to twice the height of the facility was also established on safety grounds.

However, as provided under the law, setback requirements will not apply to community-participation power facilities, rooftop solar installations on buildings, or solar facilities for self-consumption. The exemptions are intended to encourage the spread of community-based projects and improve public acceptance of renewable energy.

The ministry said the distances set in the enforcement decree are not uniform standards applied to all local governments, but rather caps designed to prevent local governments from imposing excessively restrictive setback requirements.

Local governments whose ordinances exceed the decree's limits must ease them to comply, while those already within the limits do not need to amend their ordinances.

The ministry plans to hold briefing sessions for local governments nationwide to guide them in revising their ordinances before the law takes effect.

Tuesday's Cabinet meeting also approved a reorganization of the legal framework stemming from the separation of the existing Act on the Promotion of the Development, Use and Diffusion of New and Renewable Energy into two laws: the Renewable Energy Development, Use and Diffusion Promotion Act and the Act on the Promotion of the Hydrogen Economy and Safety Management of Hydrogen. The enforcement decrees will be revised accordingly to reflect the split.

Lee Gyeong-su, the ministry's director general for renewable energy policy, said the amendment "sets a national-level cap on setback distances that had differed from region to region, improving predictability for renewable energy projects while also taking into account community acceptance." He added that the ministry would "continue to communicate with local governments to ensure the system takes stable root on the ground and contributes to the broader expansion of renewable energy."


thlee@heraldcorp.com