Pictured is the Gold-Certified Virginia Pollinator Smart Solar Facility at Cople Elementary School in Westmoreland County. Photo is taken after second growing season.
The Virginia Pollinator-Smart Team is hosting an informational session about the Virginia Pollinator-Smart Program. As part of the approval process for utility-scale solar installations, more counties are incorporating native plants and pollinators into their vegetation requirements both in ordinances and Conditional Use Permits/Special Use Permits. The Pollinator-Smart Program is a voluntary certification program that provides an existing framework that localities can reference when determining what requirements surrounding native plants and pollinators they would like to include as part of their permitting and planning. The aim of this meeting is to provide an overview of the program and then answer any questions or concerns counties may have.
This webinar is being presented by the Pollinator-Smart Team including the Department of Conservation and Recreation in conjunction with the Department of Wildlife Resources and the Department of Environmental Quality.
Interested parties can register for the Webinar by emailing pollinator.smart@dcr.virginia.gov using the subject line Pollinator-Smart Locality Meeting RSVP.
VACo Contact: Joe Lerch, AICP