Requests grow for solar grids on farmland

Conversion of farmland to residential subdivisions is giving way to a new development pressure, installation of sprawling solar grids.

Requests to develop solar fields, or solar farms, have started to mount in Rhode Island, in towns and cities that still have large areas of open acreage. Several communities have moved to respond to the new technology by including procedures for reviewing facilities in existing comprehensive plans, or by adopting new zoning ordinances.

The rules generally try to balance the desire of farmers, or landowners, for green-energy development options, with the concerns of neighbors who may view the sprawling displays as unsightly or object to their noise.

Cranston, which has two major projects under consideration, last year agreed to allow development of solar projects in areas of large, undeveloped acreage, where normally a 2-acre lot size for housing would be required. Of the two projects proposed for an area of western Cranston, one had previously been approved for 39 house lots.

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Cumberland, which is now considering an ordinance that would address solar fields for the first time, has proposed differing levels of review based on the size of an installation. The largest, or “major” solar farm, would only be allowed in industrial or agricultural zones, on properties of at least 5 acres, according to Planning Director Jonathan Stevens.

A 20-foot deep vegetated buffer, such as trees, is required to screen the installations. And forested land cannot be cleared for them, he said.

The proposal is modeled after efforts approved in the past two years in Foster, East Providence and Coventry.

In a statement, Cumberland Mayor William S. Murray said the ordinance tries to balance community needs. “We want to take a proactive stance on such development, and enact reasonable controls that allow for this important renewable energy source to come online, while at the same time totally protecting Cumberland’s quality of life.”

For farmers, the conversion of fallow fields or wooded areas on their farms to solar offers another option for income. Typically, the property owner will lease the land to the solar-development company under a long-term arrangement.

Such is the proposal in Cumberland, where a portion of a 30-acre site, used as a hayfield, could become a 1,210-kilowatt solar field.

The development company, Bella Energy of Colorado, has been working on the project for nearly 18 months, conferring with the town as it developed its proposed ordinance.

For the company, the proposed development restriction to 20 percent of the land area is not an issue. Typically, when solar installations are put in over farms, it’s the back-of-the-fields acreage, where the land is least productive, according to Nicholas Goodier, an attorney representing Bella Energy.

The company expects to use about 5 acres of the fallow hayfield, for example, he said.

Other arguments in favor of solar development are its ability to generate construction jobs and to help consumers who benefit from reduced electrical costs, said Nicholas Perugini, director of business development for Bella Energy.

The company leases its sites from landowners, then harvests the energy from the photovoltaic cells installed on the former fields and sells it to a utility, such as National Grid. Twenty-year leases are the norm, and are designed to transfer to the next property owner, should the farm be sold.

Solar installation on agricultural land is growing in Rhode Island, but not as widespread as in some other states, including Massachusetts, where the industry has had encouragement through various state programs.

In Rehoboth, a solar-development company, BlueWave Capital, worked with town and state officials on development of a large solar field on a former dairy farm. The project, developed by RGS Energy, is called a community-shared solar site, in which utility customers can purchase part of the solar farm, then receive the benefits from panels they “own” in the form of credits on their electrical bills. •

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1 COMMENT

  1. This shows despite the sound bite, there is no such thing as “clean energy” as sacrificing farmland or natural areas for a solar “farm” is a real price, especially in highly developed Rhode Island. This is in addition to the manufacturing, installation, maintenance, and disposal of energy facilities that all have impacts too. Best to try to use less energy thru enhanced efficiency and conservation, but there is less money to be made in such activities.