Growing Renewable Energy on the Farm

James Rose is a Policy Analyst at Network for New Energy Choices, where this post was originally published.

While the fuel is free, renewable systems have high upfront costs. Providing a set of incentives is essential to making renewable projects financially feasible. State policymakers are aware of this, and a popular incentive being implemented across the country is net metering. Along with tax incentives, net metering helps make an investment in solar energy more affordable by reducing a customer’s electric bill, thus decreasing the time it takes for the system to pay for itself.

Net metering is a billing mechanism that allows a customer who generates their own electricity with solar panels or a wind turbine to connect to the electric grid and “bank” any extra electricity they generate by spinning their electric meter backward and earning credit. For example, if your photovoltaic (PV) solar system produced 50 kilowatt-hours (kWh) more than you consumed in the month of June, you could roll those kWhs over as a credit from month to month. If July and August are sunny and your PV system meets all of your electricity needs or more, you may not need any of those 50 kWh credits until the fall or winter.

In California, farmers are using the sun to grow crops and, increasingly, to produce electricity. California’s net metering rules were written to allow large agricultural facilities like wineries and those that shell almonds to take advantage of them. Due to the seasonal nature of energy use in these agricultural facilities, it’s important for them to be able to bank net metering credits in the offseason that they can then use during peak periods of production in order to make these solar projects financially viable.

Farms are ideal locations to take advantage of renewable energy. With ample land and buildings with roof space, they are obvious places to harness wind and solar energy.

“With organic remaining the fastest growing segment in food, many growers want to emphasize their sustainable credentials.”

PV systems are becoming more prevalent across many sectors in the United States, due in part to an increasing number of states allowing net metering. In the case of farms, however, the property may have more than one meter, rendering a standard net metering arrangement unworkable for the entire property. Some states allow farms to aggregate all of the meters on the property, and possibly those on their neighbor’s property. To also help get across the multiple meter hurdle, several utilities and certain states are implementing community solar solutions that allow more than one electric customer to invest in a solar project, who then jointly reap the benefit of lower electric bills. These programs allow electric customers to make an investment or subscribe to a share of a private or utility-owned renewable energy system.

The feature set of articles in the March issue of Solar Today outlines the various community solar programs that are found across the country. The programs range from Ellensburg, Washington’s Solar Community Project to Vermont’s group net metering and on down to the brand new Florida Keys Electric Cooperative’s Simple Solar Program. And, to help lay a firm foundation as states and utilities develop these programs, the Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC) has developed a new Community Renewable Power Proposal that is built from the best elements of state and municipal community programs.