There Goes the Sun

Scott Hardie | April 17, 2020
I had no idea that so many people were opposed to solar farms in rural America until this NY Times article. I am flabbergasted.

1) They are a boon for the environment. Would droughts and wildfires caused by climate change be preferable?

2) They are a moneymaker. With agriculture in decline, rural America needs more options.

3) They create jobs in installation and maintenance. See 2.

4) They raise tax revenue for the community, providing better funding for schools and hospitals. Isn't there a wave of rural hospitals closing right now, when we're about to need them most?

The primary objection to them seems to be that they're ugly. I suppose they're a little industrial looking, but they're really not that bad. They're not nearly as massive as wind turbines, they're low to the ground, and they don't even block the view of trees behind them. They don't block the view of anything except the grass.

I fail to see how the benefits conferred by solar farms outweighs their ugliness, to the point that so many people are organizing resistance to them. Roads are ugly too, crisscrossing otherwise natural unspoiled countryside, but they serve such a useful purpose that nobody organizes protests about them.

What gives? Do you find solar farms ugly? Would you oppose them in your area, especially if they spoiled your view across the street?

Samir Mehta | April 17, 2020
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