From NC News Service:
By Stephanie Carson
North Carolina has almost 5 million acres of farmland, but a new crop of solar installations popping up around the state has some concerned that renewable energy could make some of that land unavailable.
Yet that’s not the case according to a new study released by the North Carolina Department of Agriculture. It says solar installations currently occupy about .2 percent of the state’s available farmland – or 1,200 acres.
With the state already ranking second in the country in terms of installed solar, Robin Aldina, manager of energy research with the NC Sustainable Energy Association, which commissioned the study, says solar isn’t harmful competition for farmland.
“While that number can fluctuate as more development occurs – we see more building – we see we’re not really at a point that we need to worry about the amount of land being used by solar installations in the state right now,” he states.
Currently, utility-scale solar installations add 2.3 gigawatts of capacity to the state’s electricity grid, enough to power 256,000 homes.
North Carolina ranks only behind California in terms of installed solar, but ahead of sunnier states such as Texas and Florida.
Many farmers are choosing to lease some of their land to utility solar companies, which generates a better return per acre, according to Aldina.
“Farmers are able to subsidize some of their crop land, their agricultural land, by developing a solar installation” he explains. “So they’re getting paid to lease some of their land for solar, and that allows them to keep operating a farm that otherwise might be in economic trouble.”
Aldina says farmers typically receive $400 to $1,000 per acre annually for leasing land to solar developers. Most crops provide about $300 per acre on an annual basis.
Before you comment
The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.