The largest solar farm proposal in the Midwest recently received approval from Wisconsin state regulators. Most of the 3,500-acre Badger Hollow Solar Farm project, which is being developed by Illinois-based Invenergy, is located on active farmland and will include up to 1.2 million solar panels on 2,200 acres of the project area. Some in the community saw the project as a staggering land use change in their community and contrary to the county’s farmland preservation plan. Significant local opposition to the project decried the use of prime agricultural land for solar production.
This case is emblematic of the dilemmas faced by the solar industry, utilities, and those working at the local, state, and federal levels to decarbonize the power sector and increase the use of local renewable energy. The Great Plains Institute is working to address these issues in ways that support solar development and agricultural protection goals. Continue reading »
Access to utility energy data will play a critical role in the level of success communities achieve in shaping their energy future. That’s why the Great Plains Institute, with our partners and other stakeholders, identified opportunities to improve availability of electric utility data at the community-level and developed a data protocol as a resource for communities. 
Earlier this spring, 100 electric vehicle (EV) stakeholders gathered for a day-long event, “EV-olution: Charging Ahead with Electric Vehicles in Minnesota Communities,” held at the at the Como Park Zoo and Conservatory. The event brought together people from 35 cities, state agencies, all of Minnesota major electric utilities, and nonprofits working in the EV space to accelerate the transition to an electrified transportation system. 
The City of St. Louis Park in Minnesota passed an ambitious 
A recent expansion of Minneapolis’ Green Cost Share Program to solar energy projects, with a priority placed on those in Green Zones, has led to significant investments in solar projects in the city that will contribute to increased economic development and reduced greenhouse gas emissions. 
This is a regular blog series where GPI staff share picks throughout the year of what we’re interested in right now, from podcasts to analysis (
If sunlight strikes a solar panel, but we don’t use the electricity generated, is it “wasted”? In some parts of the country, so much solar energy is produced at midday that there is no use for it. Demand for electricity has already been fully met by solar and other sources of generation; the value of additional electricity on the grid is actually negative. 