We are unaware of credible evidence that solar farms are a health risk to anyone, but we will keep our mind open enough to have it changed. A reporter at this newspaper has been assigned the job of asking experts, both pro and con on solar farms, and we will present a story to you so you can make that determination for yourself.

That doesn’t mean that solar farms should always get the green light when seeking permission from local government. On Monday night, the Robeson County Board of Commissioners kept flashing the yellow, tabling for a third time any decision on two requests for conditional-use permits that are needed for separate solar farms in a county where they are already abundant.

The commissioners did so after hearing complaints from residents who live near the proposed sites, whose concerns, in additional to potential health risks, include aesthetics and the possibility of property being devalued.

A different conversation, one that is superfluous for today, is whether solar farms and the green energy they produce are worth the government subsidies that have made them so popular. When it comes to energy, we do favor an all-of-the-above approach that includes green energy.

Setting aside the health issue for now, we don’t find solar farms offensive to the eye even if we would much rather look at rows of cash crops. As for property values and the possibility of depreciation, there ought to be sufficient data to make a determination. There certainly are enough solar farms in this county that could be used in the equation.

Which is today’s point.

Our county commissioners waited until Robeson County had one of the highest concentrations of solar farms in North Carolina, a state which is among the leaders in the nation for solar farms, to wonder out-loud if these farms might be deleterious to a person’s health. They did so after more than one speaker on Monday night raised the aforementioned concerns. The idea of a moratorium was even floated by Commissioner Jerry Stephens.

The county, with 23 solar farms that are valued at more than $100 million total, has been granting permits here and there without a whole lot of conversation. The county benefits from property taxes paid on the farms and there are also jobs, albeit temporary and poorly paid, that are created. The benefit for the landowner is an additional revenue source on land where crops once grew.

This isn’t about a health concern. It is about a single commissioner, Raymond Cummings, and a threat to his re-election because one of the solar farms is being opposed by voters in his district. Cummings barely won re-election last time, and the target on his back is bigger now as he has been exposed as the alpha dog on an unpopular board.

Among those who complained Monday night were Jo Ann Lowery, who is a member of the Board of Education for the Public Schools of Robeson County, and Ray Oxendine, a former Maxton commissioner. Both know how to get voters to the polls, and their presence at the meeting is an implied threat to Cummings’ re-election.

Cummings will not jeopardize losing the power he enjoys as a commissioner — as well as his status as one of the right best paid and benefited commissioners in North Carolina.

So Cummings, unable to stall beyond March 15, will eventually oppose that permit, and the dutiful commissioners will follow their leader. Denying the permit might be the right thing to do, but it should not happen for the wrong reason.

It will interesting to see what happens with the other permit request, which is in Chairman Noah Woods’ district. Woods is only finishing his second year of a two-year term, and it’s doubtful that he runs again.

We like its chances better.