Ameren Missouri and the Missouri Department of Conservation are closing the northern portion of the Reform Conservation Area starting July 1. Ameren Missouri confirmed it is preparing the area outside Fulton for a solar energy facility.
Ameren Missouri said in a statement that it is currently finalizing the plans for the solar facility at the site. A spokesperson from the company confirmed in an email that the Missouri Public Service Commission, which governs investor-owned utilities in the state, has yet to approve the project.
The July closure will shutter hiking, hunting and fishing spots in the affected area.
The conservation area contains the Callaway Energy Center, Ameren Missouri’s only nuclear energy producer. The facility produces about a quarter of Ameren Missouri’s electricity at its existing capacity.
The plans for a solar project at Callaway Energy Center track with Ameren’s larger goal to expand its renewable energy facilities. Ameren received approval last October to build a third solar facility in the St. Louis area.
Ameren Missouri’s website says the company is targeting net-zero emissions by 2045 with a milestone goal to decrease emissions 60% by 2030. The company’s current plan aims to increase overall energy production across the state while moving toward renewable forms of energy production.
The company has owned most of the nearly 7,000-acre conservation area since it selected the site for a nuclear facility in the 1970s. The Missouri Department of Conservation manages the property and leases it as a public use area.
The northern portion of the conservation area contains most of Coats’ Prairie, an early Callaway County settlement consisting of native prairie land and cultivated agricultural land.
An MDC spokesperson said in a release that it will update signage in the area to reflect the new boundaries. Visitors are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the new map before visiting.
