Supporting Agricultural Landowners to Make Decisions about Solar Development: Training for Service Providers

According to a United States Department of Energy study (2021), by 2050, 90% of solar energy will come from utility-scale projects in rural communities. Given ambitious state goals for reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, the pace of solar energy development is already accelerating rapidly in the Western United States, placing significant pressure on the region’s agricultural land, and by extension, on the farmers, ranchers, and landowners who steward that land. Across the West, producers and landowners are being approached by solar developers with enticing offers to lease their land for energy production. These offers may have considerable financial appeal, but they also carry significant risk. 

It is essential that producers and landowners understand the risks and challenges associated with leasing land for solar energy. Solar leases can last up to 30 years and can be difficult for landowners to back out of, and the installations can have significant impacts on the land (including soil compaction and disturbance) and may limit future agricultural production. With these concerns in mind, in 2022, with support from the Western Extension Risk Management Education Center, AFT researched and published “Solar Leasing: A Guidebook for Agricultural Landowners in the Pacific Northwest.” 

The guidebook and related workshops, which were designed to help producers understand the full suite of solar leasing risks and equip them with the tools and skills to evaluate whether solar leases are right for them, have already been accessed hundreds of times in the last twelve months. One workshop participant reported, “Well organized. Well researched. Trustworthy staff. Clear presentation. Covered important information. No farm should consider solar, without consulting the guide and hopefully listening to a full presentation.” 

AFT recognizes an opportunity to build on the momentum created by the solar leasing guidebook, and a clear need to meet increasing demand for information and technical assistance related to solar energy on agricultural land. The proposed project will build on existing work by adapting the solar leasing guidebook for producers in California, and by developing and offering a train-the-trainer program for agricultural service providers in California, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington, to prepare them to help producers and landowners make informed decisions about solar energy. 

The proposed project will also build on other SARE funded projects, including Project FW23-413, “Agrivoltaic Research at Jack’s Solar Farm,” and Project LNE22-454R, “Vertical Bifacial Solar Panels: A Winning Solution for Agrivoltaics and Farmers.” While these projects are focused on researching agrivoltaic methods and best practices, AFT’s proposed project will help service providers translate that information to farmers and ranchers. With the proposed project, AFT will adapt its existing Pacific Northwest guidebook for a California audience, including California-specific permitting requirements and updates to the existing agrivoltaics chapter to reflect current research. The train-the-trainer component of the proposed project will also help agricultural service providers better understand the current research and the potential application of agrivolatics in diverse cropping and grazing systems, preparing them to help producers and landowners evaluate whether their operations are well-suited for agrivoltaic installations.