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Smart Solar℠

Growing Renewable Energy while Strengthening Farm Viability and Protecting Healthy Soil

The Department of Energy estimates we need more than 10 million acres to scale up solar energy by 2050, and AFT projects over 80% could be sited on agricultural lands. This growth will create opportunities, but it also threatens farmland, and the conflict between using land to grow food and using it to produce energy is already generating public backlash against renewable energy deployment overall. America needs both—renewable energy and productive, resilient farms and ranches. Smart Solar℠ can be the solution.

What is Smart Solar℠?

Resources

Smart Solar℠ refers to solar projects that meet three main, equally important goals: (1) safeguarding land well-suited for farming and ranching, (2) strengthening farm viability, and (3) accelerating solar energy development.

Significantly more renewable energy, including solar, is needed in the U.S. to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and combat the climate crisis. Farmers and ranchers need this transition to combat climate change and minimize future impacts from droughts, floods, extreme heat, and beyond.

Smart Solar℠ guides solar development to where it has the least negative impact on land well suited for farming, ensures that agricultural land where projects are sited can be farmed in the future, and promotes “agrivoltaics” solar projects to create opportunities for both farming and solar energy on the same land.

If done well, Smart Solar℠ projects can provide income for farmers and landowners and protect land well-suited for agriculture.

Smart Solar℠ Principles

Prioritize solar siting on buildings and land not well suited for farming

Emphasize solar energy development on rooftops, carports, irrigation ditches, brownfields, or other land not well suited for agriculture to help minimize the impacts of solar energy on our nation’s best agricultural land and farm businesses.

Safeguard the ability for land to be used for agriculture

If solar energy is developed on farmland or ranchland, policies and practices protect soil health, especially during construction and decommissioning, to ensure opportunities for farming in the future.

Grow agrivoltaics for agricultural production and solar energy

Agriculture and solar energy can coexist if appropriate planning is undertaken. Agrivoltaics projects sustain agricultural production underneath solar panels and/or between rows of solar panels throughout the life of the project.

Promote equity and farm viability

Farmers and underserved communities should benefit from solar energy development. There must be inclusive stakeholder engagement to ensure projects strengthen farm viability and reflect farmer interests, including underserved producers that face barriers to accessing land and...

Smart Solar℠ by Region

New England Smart Solar

Texas Smart Solar℠

Smart Solar℠ Policy Recommendations

Enacting local, state, and federal policies that ensure the U.S. solar buildout strengthens farm viability and keeps land in farming will be critical to reducing land use and siting tensions and getting renewable energy projects built. AFT developed policy recommendations to meet these goals and advance Smart Solar℠ principles.

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