La Plata County, CO Solar Energy: Panel Permits (2026)

Section 73-19 of the La Plata County Code sets a reasonable permitting process for solar electric energy development and applies to small and large scale solar facilities. Table 73-19 divides projects by generation and acreage. Micro solar, under 150 kw and under 5,000 s.f., needs no land use permit under section 66-3, though the title of that section notes that building permits remain a separate question. Small scale solar, from 150 kw to 1 MW and 5,000 s.f. to 5 acres, needs an administrative land use permit, decided by the director under section 66-18 with an option to refer the application to the Board of County Commissioners. Large scale solar, over 1 MW up to 2 MW and over 5 to 10 acres, needs a minor land use permit. Most of the county outside the Animas Valley is unzoned, so these standards apply countywide.

Structure mounted solar must be mounted as flush to a roof or structure as practicable and can raise the structure's height by a maximum of five (5) feet. Ground-mounted solar must sit fifty (50) feet from residential property lines, twenty (20) feet from nonresidential property lines and fifty (50) feet from the legally described boundary of a public right-of-way. On residential properties, it cannot go in the front yard or within the side or rear setbacks. No facility can be more than twenty (20) feet in height. Ancillary equipment must be screened from view when the adjacent property is residential, glare on neighbors and roadways must be minimized, and power lines run underground except at the connection to the network.

Decommissioning is handled by written agreement with the county, providing for reuse or dismantlement at the owner's expense. A facility is abandoned if it produces no energy for more than twelve (12) consecutive months, unless the director has approved a plan to return it to service. The application adds a site plan, an operating plan, a noxious weed plan, elevation drawings of at least two (2) sides, and the decommissioning agreement to the general submittal requirements of section 66-11. Roof structures supporting panels must be designed to the LPC wind design speed under the county's IRC amendments in section 18-36, effective June 30, 2026.