Building solar on fallowed lands can generate multiple benefits beyond an alternative revenue source. For instance, it can help preserve habitat, control dust, and support regional employment. Over the past decade, the solar industry has learned a lot about how to create these benefits while minimizing potential impacts.
Employment and Socioeconomic Impacts
As implementation of SGMA proceeds and some farmland is fallowed, some local agricultural jobs will be lost. Under some conditions, developing solar on these lands can generate new jobs for community members. While it is unlikely that new solar jobs can entirely replace lost agricultural employment, the potential for the industry to fill part of this gap while providing a pipeline to adjacent trades is high. In our workshops and discussions with stakeholders, we heard substantial optimism in this regard (Rosser and De…
Solar Energy and Groundwater in the San Joaquin Valley
