Featured in Lighting the way – 05-2024

Opposition stymies solar – sometimes

Large-scale solar is booming in the United States, with 22.5 GW of utility scale capacity installed in 2023, according to trade body the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). That represents 77% growth over 2022, due to strong policies and the country’s decarbonization goals. Such figures might suggest that solar has strong support but developers cite public opposition as a major challenge.

By

Anne Fischer

10 May 2024

There is great potential for utility scale PV in the United States but community acceptance can be hard to come by. | Photo: AES

Local opposition to solar energy comes in many forms, from neighbors who live near proposed large scale installations, to organized groups and municipal boards who pass legislation banning utility scale projects.Perhaps the best-known story of solar opposition almost derailing a huge PV project in the United States began in 2019, in Spotsylvania, Virginia. The group …

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