Seamus Fitzgerald has heard a lot about solar power. As the associate director of real estate at solar energy developer One Energy Renewables, he approaches farmers and other landowners in the Midwest with proposals to lease the property for solar power. Some landowners are excited to be part of the transition to clean energy. Others are hostile to the idea of placing a row of sparkling panels on their land.
Fitzgerald has managed to convince many farmers by explaining the simple economics of leasing land for solar power. “At the end of the day, financial payments from these types of projects are generally higher than what people can pull off the ground through other types of crops,” he said. To sell solar power to people who may hesitate, he often talks about technology It was invented in the US. “When you install a solar project, you’re collecting American resources in the US,” Fitzgerald said.
Again, President Donald Trump talks about energy, he usually praises American oil and gas, not renewables. Still, the industry’s leading lobbying group, the Solar Energy Industries Association, has found plenty of ways to align the work with the administration’s topic. It’s spreading now The whole sitenext to the image of the American flag floating above the solar panels is the new slogan “Domestic American Energy.” The association participated earlier this month Washington DC lobbying Blitzurges lawmakers to maintain tax credits for clean energy projects.
Solar provides it Almost 6% Of the total US generation generation last year, it is expected to grow rapidly and be supplied.Almost all growthAccording to the Energy Information Bureau before Trump, this year’s electricity generation. Many people want this technology that is widely popular among Americans. 78% Supporting the development of more solar farms will help us move away from Trump’s culture war on climate change. Solar energy has the ability to bridge ideological disparities and appeal to environmentalists, rather than wind power generation with towering turbines. “I won’t stay with me” Libertarian Similarly.
“President Trump specifically says he loves solar. And as energy demand rises, solar is the most efficient and affordable for quickly adding more energy to the grid. I know that’s a way,” in a statement to Grist, president and CEO of the association.
In December, her trade group was released Policy Roadmap This reflects Trump’s agenda with priorities such as “eliminating dependence on China” and “cutting deficits in the energy sector.” It’s a change from the association’s vision Layout for 2020 Hopper after former President Joe Biden’s election I promised “Meet a moment of the climate era with fairness and justice at the forefront.”
The new language reflects a shift in federal priorities, but also reflects the perception among Sun supporters that there is no need to talk about climate change to advance clean technology. “Energy independence – I think they should scream that out of the roof,” Fitzgerald said. “All politicians in the American world should be saying, ‘We’re trying to make these things to gather energy here.’ ”
How to remove climate change from culture wars
Last year, solar represents that 80% New electrical generation capabilities added to the US grid. However, some people predict slowdown. Solar industry stocks have plummeted Biden signed in 2022 after Trump’s election in November after investors speculated that Republicans could abolish solar tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act. Reports from Data Analytics Company Wood Mackenzie The installation of the sun was predicted to stagnate in many countries due to “post-election uncertainty, decline in incentives, reforms in the electricity sector, and a shift towards a less ambitious climate agenda.”
“The bottom line is everything that leads to uncertainty in one of our economy’s fastest growing sectors, and what is more important to businesses and investors than market clarity. There is no such thing as “promoting economic and environmental policies. “And now, what Washington is doing about America’s clean energy future is just as clear as the midnight snowstorm in DC.”
Trump has since complained about wind power. Offshore Wind Farm threatened untouched views from Scotland’s golf courses Right after he bought it in 2006. On his first day in office this year, he suspended new permits for wind projects on federal lands and waters. However, his administration’s position on Solar is unknown. He ranted about how Solar Farms take over the desert. “Big Fan” of technology. “I think they have a better advantage on solar,” Keefe said. “But who knows? And who knows how long?”
The Trump administration’s attack on the federal bureaucracy has already put solar projects at risk. The administration has federal grants that include $7 billion programs to bring Solar for All, Solar for All, Solar for All and Solar Solar to low-income communities despite court orders to announce the funds. I’m withholding. “We see real delays in bringing the door to projects that require that money,” said Sachuconstantine, executive director of Voting Solar, a nonprofit that has easy access to solar power.
Despite the continued uncertainty, most solar on all projects is “still looking to move forward,” says Michelle Ruth, executive director of the Environmental Protection Network, an environmental protection alumni group. Masu.
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With some measures, the culture war has begun to infiltrate American opinions about the sun. Republican support for the new solar farm fell to 84-64% between 2020 and 2024. Voting from the Pew Research Center last year. Misinformation campaigns are increasingly targeting clean energy, promoting the idea that the sun and wind are unreliable. Stop farmland and solar projects in Timberland.
According to Dustin Mulbany, a professor of environmental studies at San Jose State University, Dustin Mulbany, who studies conflicts over the development of the sun, there are several good reasons why people are hesitant about the technology. there is. People may be concerned about projects that will take over major farmlands, get through animal habitats, or affect Indigenous cultural sites. Careful planning will help avoid these conflicts, Mulvaney said. For example, solar farms can coexist with sheep. It can be constructed in a way that leaves space between panels To move the pronghorn antelopeand generally avoid “valuable areas that support developing projects.”Low impact siteDegraded land, etc.
Mulvaney opposes the narrative that these concerns slow solar power, claiming that most projects face no resistance at all. That’s what US utilities do Getting on track to achieve its goal of moving to 100% renewable energy by 2060he pointed out. “For me, the fastest way to get more solar is to ask the utility to buy it sooner.”
No matter what Trump does, clean energy advocates hope that solar projects can continue to move forward at the state level. “We feel good about the future of clean energy in the southeastern states,” said Mark Fleming, president and CEO of Clean Energy, an organization that works in Virginia, Carolina, Georgia, Florida and Louisiana. Ta. “You know, we don’t talk about it in terms of environment. We are not talking about it in terms of market choice and competition as solar prices are falling rapidly, and we are excelling in economics. I’ll talk about it in terms of “In the last decade, solar installation costs have fallen by nearly 40%. According to the Solar Energy Industries Association.
Constantine says talking about the benefits of solar is key to overcoming hostility, whether it is due to job creation, reduced blackouts or lowering electricity prices. “It’s a way to cut costs, and I think it’s a resonating message in this age of rising energy costs and truly pinching people’s pocketbooks,” Constantine said. “When people talk about affordability, resilience and reliability, people get it.”
Naveena Sadasivam contributed to this story with a report.
