Arendtsville Borough and Butler Township, Adams County

"12. Decommissioning (a) The Solar Farm owner is required to notify the Township immediately upon cessation or abandonment of the operation. The Solar Farm shall be presumed to be discontinued or abandoned if no electricity is generated by the system for a period of twelve (12) continuous months. (b) The Solar Farm owner shall have twelve (12) months in which to dismantle and remove the Solar Farm including all solar related equipment or appurtenances related thereto, including but not limited to buildings, cabling, electrical components, roads, foundations, solar facility connections and other associated facilities. (c) To the extent possible, the materials shall be re-sold or salvaged. Materials that cannot be re-sold or salvaged shall be disposed of at a facility authorized to dispose of such materials by federal or state law. Where disposal occurs the Solar Farm owner shall inform the Municipality of the location where the materials are to be disposed. (d) Any soil exposed during the removal shall be stabilized in accordance with applicable erosion and sediment control standards. (e) Any access drive paved aprons from public roads may remain for future use. (f) The Solar Farm site area shall be restored to its pre-existing condition, suitable for its prior use, except the landowner may authorize, in writing, any buffer landscaping or access roads installed to accommodate the Solar Farm to remain. (g) Any necessary permits, such as Erosion and Sedimentation and NPDES permits, shall be obtained prior to decommissioning activities. (h) At the time of issuance of the permit for the construction of the Solar Farm, the owner shall provide financial security in the form and amount acceptable to the Township to secure its obligations under this Section. i. The Solar Farm Developer shall, at the time of application, provide the Township with an estimate of the cost of performing the decommissioning activities required herein, together with an administrative and inflation factor of twenty-five percent (25%) to account for the cost of obtaining permits to complete said activities. The estimate may include an estimated salvage and resale value, discounted by a factor of twenty percent (20%), so that the Solar Farm Developer shall receive credit for eighty percent (80%) of the value. The Decommissioning Cost Estimate Formula shall be: Gross Cost of Decommissioning Activities + Administrative Factor of 25% - Salvage and Resale Credit of 80% = Estimated Cost of Decommissioning ii. On every annual anniversary of the date of providing the decommissioning financial security the Solar Farm Owner shall provide an updated decommission cost estimate, utilizing the formula set forth above with adjustments for inflation and cost and value changes. If the decommissioning security amount changes, the Solar Farm Owner shall remit the increased financial security to the Township within 30 days of the approval of the updated decommissioning security estimate by the Township. Any updates to the cost estimate may require additional funds to be placed in escrow by the Solar Farm owner. iii. Decommissioning security estimates shall be subject to review and approval by the Township and the Solar Farm Developer/Owner shall be responsible for administrative, legal, and engineering costs incurred by the Township for such review. iv. At no time shall the decommissioning financial security be an amount less than $500,000.00. v. The decommissioning security may be in the form of cash, letter of credit, or an investment grade corporate guarantee rated BBB-/Baa3 or better by S&P, Moody' s, or AM Best, as applicable. vi. Prior to approval of any plan or permit for a Solar Farm, the Solar Farm Developer shall enter into a Decommissioning Agreement with the Township outlining the responsibilities of the parties under this Agreement as to the Decommissioning of the Solar Farm. vii. The financial security shall be managed in accordance with Sections 509 through 511 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code, specifically, but not exclusively, with regard to those provisions regarding the release of the financial security to the Solar Farm owner as decommissioning activities are completed."