A state regulatory board in Ohio has greenlit the state’s biggest solar project and the United States’ biggest agrivoltaics operation, over the objections of local governments and some citizens.
The 6,000-acre (2,428-hectare), 800-megawatt Oak Run project will be located in “staunchly Republican Madison County,” some of it on land owned by tech billionaire Bill Gates, Canary Media reports. The US$1-billion project, developed by Shell subsidiary Savion, will also feature 300 megawatts of battery storage.
“But as solar power generation grows in the state, so has local opposition,” the news story states, in a county where 88% of the land is designated for agriculture, primarily soybeans and corn. “We don’t want any solar in Madison County,” wrote one local resident, in what Canary Media calls a “representative comment” on the Ohio Power Siting Board website. “It’s a waste of 5,000 acres of farmland. Tell Bill Gates to put it in his own backyard. Not ours. Absolutely disgusting.”
Though the project “will spur millions in revenue and economic activity in the region every year, the residents of the townships closest to the installation have voiced disapproval of the proposed solar farm, citing loss of farmland, rural character and property values, as well as potential environmental impacts,” the news story states. “The contentious debate has pitted local township governments and residents against proponents of the project, including labour unions, the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, and environmentalists.”
Oak Run is expected to create thousands of construction jobs and about 60 long-term operations and maintenance positions, along with an estimated $7.2 million per year in local tax revenues over a 35-year operating life.
Solar installations on U.S. farms increased 30% between 2017 and 2022, Canary Media says, citing U.S. Census of Agriculture data.
