Land trusts are helping solar projects site faster...and smarter

From creating guides and tools that can help communities make smart siting decisions to advocating for local policies that protect vital natural areas and farmlands, land trusts have much to offer.

By Darci Palmquist December 12, 2023

Across the country, land trusts are engaging in solar development projects in their regions to help ensure the renewable energy future will benefit people, economies and the environment. From creating guides and tools that can help communities make smart siting decisions to advocating for local policies that protect vital natural areas and farmlands, land trusts have much to offer.

Factoring in water

Water is at the center of everything in Colorado.  According to Sally Wier, the groundwater conservation project manager at Colorado Open Lands, water scarcity in the state is driving changes in agriculture.

“Here in Colorado’s San Luis Valley, we are faced with a rapidly depleting aquifer that is forcing farmers to make hard choices to reduce production or fallow land. At the same time, this valley is optimal for solar development, which could provide a much-needed economic replacement for those farmers,” said Wier.

Colorado Open Lands is piloting the use of groundwater conservation easements to support aquifer recovery, and they are working with researchers at Colorado State University on solar siting and design that explore how arrays might support revegetation efforts for land coming out of irrigation. In September, the land trust was awarded a grant from the Land Trust Alliance to create a guide for land trusts in Colorado to evaluate the compatibility of community and commercial-scale solar with conservation values on potential conservation properties. The guide will consider how arrays impact water rights on irrigated farm and ranch land and how the emerging field of agrivoltaics — the simultaneous use of areas of land for both solar panels and agriculture — may bring new alignment to conservation and renewable energy goals.

Solar siting tools

In New York, Scenic Hudson is committed to ensuring that solar development is a win-win for people and the environment. The Hudson Valley-based land trust has produced multiple tools and resources for stakeholders in recent years, including its Solar Siting Mapping Tool, launched in 2020.

“Any assistance municipalities can get in helping to make more informed decisions is always valuable,” said David Barton, building department director for the town of Lloyd, N.Y. "This is certainly one of those tools that does help."

Using GIS mapping layers, the tool overlays natural resources with important characteristics for solar development, such as gentle slopes and distance to transmission lines. Communities that are considering planning and zoning for future solar development can use the tool to evaluate proposals by developers or identify preferred sites for solar to make smart decisions that bring clean energy to residents while minimizing impacts to natural and community assets.

The interactive mapping tool is part of a suite of “How to Solar Now” materials created by Scenic Hudson to help decision-makers and community members learn more about solar energy and ultimately facilitate its development, with the goal of accelerating renewable energy development while preserving important natural resources and community character.

Protecting prime farmland

Farmland makes up a significant portion of the economy and culture of Maryland’s Eastern Shore. But the area’s flat, open farm fields are also ideal candidates for solar development. In 2022, Eastern Shore Land Conservancy worked closely with local government and planning agencies to pass legislation that would help reduce the impact of large, industrial-scale solar projects on Talbot County’s most productive farmland. The newly passed legislation contains key provisions to bolster farmland preservation, including requiring an offset payment for every acre taken out of production.

While Maryland’s Public Service Commission, not individual counties, has the final authority to approve solar development projects and overrule restrictions, Talbot County councilmembers hope the new legislation will demonstrate the county’s willingness to work with both solar installation developers and landowners while simultaneously protecting prime farmland in the county. Councilman Frank Divilio expressed appreciation to the land trust and other conservation groups for “trying to figure out the best way to prevent solar from coming on our best farmland.”

In 2023, Eastern Shore Land Conservancy received a grant from the Land Trust Alliance and the Open Space Institute for a project to improve state policies for renewable energy systems and their impacts on agricultural lands.

Guidance for solar developers

Tall Timbers Research Station and Land Conservancy participated in the Georgia Utility Scale Solar Siting Initiative Partnership — an effort led by the Georgia Wildlife Federation, The Nature Conservancy, Georgia Power and others — to create “recommended practices” to support consideration of natural resources during the development of photovoltaic solar in Georgia.

“This was a great collaborative effort to identify best practices for utility-scale solar projects throughout all phases of project development, from cradle to grave,” said Neil Fleckenstein, planning and advocacy coordinator with Tall Timbers.

Georgia Power agreed: “Our company has been an integral partner in the development of the recommended practices.  As the company looks to expand its renewable portfolio, Georgia Power works to avoid or minimize project effects on the natural environment and hopes the recommended practices will inform and support new and responsible development of solar generation.” 

Tall Timbers also created a board policy statement to guide their efforts on utility-scale solar issues.

“We brought that before our board at a [recent] meeting and it was really very well received,” said Fleckenstein.

One of the issues the board policy addresses is prioritizing degraded lands for solar installations. This was spurred on by the cutting of a longleaf pine forest for solar development. Instead, the policy aims to guide solar toward fallow farmland.

Additional Alliance Resources:

More in Climate change