Natasha Vaughn is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media Copake town officials will continue to take public comment on changes to the town code as it relates to the proposed Shepherd’s Run 500-acre solar farm. Comments will be accepted through Thu., Sep. 17, town officials said. Hecate Energy has targeted a 900-acre space for the project, south of state Route 23 and county Route 7. The company’s proposal calls for the installation of 200,000 solar panels on 500 acres and would generate 60 megawatts of electrical power. A public hearing on the solar project was held September 10, to discuss proposed revisions to the law governing construction and siting of solar power generating facilities. “We will accept written comments until next Thursday at noontime,” Copake Town Supervisor Jeanne Mettler said. “Go to the website, review the law and take a look at the summary of the law and if you have a comment you would like to suggest you can send us an email.” The proposed revisions include dividing solar facilities into four distinct classifications based on their size and require all solar facilities, regardless of their size, to be evaluated for potential impact on local resources. The proposed revisions add requirements for siting battery energy storage systems associated with solar energy facilities. Members of the public who wish to submit a comment on the revisions can send an email to townofcopake [at] fairpoint [dot] net. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.