The challenges and opportunities of clean energy in rural America

Most of the country's clean energy — 87% of it — gets built in rural areas, since wind, solar, and battery projects need open land. But many rural counties have pushed back with bans or moratoriums on renewable projects, and the Trump administration has cut the Rural Energy for America Program, which for years helped farmers pay for solar panels that lowered their power bills.

The pushback overlooks how small a footprint solar actually has: utility-scale solar uses just 0.07% of U.S. farmland, less than a third of what golf courses take up. Meanwhile, these projects can bring real money to rural communities and farmers, who can lease land for extra income to offset rising costs and climate pressures. In Illinois, a 300-megawatt wind project is expected to generate $81 million in local taxes over 30 years. Support for these projects isn't strictly partisan either — half of Americans back solar and wind development in their own area, and even a former Republican governor now heading the solar industry's trade group is framing clean energy as a property-rights issue, arguing landowners should be free to develop their own land as they choose.

Separately, a federal judge has ruled the administration acted illegally in trying to end Solar for All, the $7 billion program that helps lower-income households access solar. If you live in a state with a similar program or are weighing a rural land lease, it's worth checking what protections or incentives currently apply where you live, since rules and funding are shifting quickly at both the state and federal level.