By Carey L. Biron for Context.
Broadcast version by Edwin J. Viera for Virginia News Connection reporting for the Solutions Journalism Network-Public News Service Collaboration

To hear Emil King tell it, the benefits of the 8,000-odd solar panels shimmering before him on an industrial lot in Washington D.C. go far beyond helping the U.S. capital city fight climate change.

The city-administered solar park was built on polluted land that had become an eyesore, and the power it produces has been used to halve the electricity bills of about 700 low-income local families, said King, a city environmental official.

"The community saw that they'd be getting money off their bills, but that it was also going to be about a vacant property getting some attention and getting cleaned up," he said.

Solar projects like the Oxon Run Community Solar Farm reflect part of a growing push by cities across the United States to include lower-income communities that are increasingly seen as vital to achieving emissions goals.

In Washington's case, that means reaching 100% renewable energy by 2032.

Part of that target involves supplying solar power to 100,000 low-income households from city-subsidized community projects, using the new electricity source to reduce their energy bills.

Unlike traditional rooftop units meant for a single household or business, community solar broadly refers to installations in which none of the electricity is used onsite, instead being fed into the grid but often earmarked for "subscribed" users.

That arrangement sets them apart from utility-scale solar projects, while community projects are also typically far smaller, able to fit into a variety of sites.

"Community solar is the keystone element," said King, a program analyst with the D.C. Department of Energy and Environment.

"We do a lot of rooftop (units), but this is the most efficient way to get a lot of capacity built fairly quickly," he said, standing amid the ground-mounted solar modules that make up the city's largest community project to date - even as new ones are regularly brought online.

Democratizing electricity

Across the country, similar projects are seen as a key way to expand access to solar energy for lower-income residents or those for whom traditional installations do not make sense such as renters, people who do not own their roofs, and those with roofs unsuitable for solar installations.

"Community solar becomes this democratizing element for electric customers," said Jeff Cramer, chief executive of the trade group Coalition for Community Solar Access (CCSA), "especially those that have been most left out by the clean-energy revolution and the grid of the past."

As cities set ambitious renewable energy targets and with an unprecedented wave of federal funding set to start arriving this year, the initiative is picking up so much momentum in places like Washington that officials are grappling to find new sites.

"We're running out of space," King said.

Earlier this year, the federal government, which has a goal of increasing community solar output by 700% from 2020 to 2025, hosted a summit stating that it was community solar's "time to shine."

"We went from a handful of projects in 2015-16 to thousands around the country," Cramer said, amounting to nearly 5 gigawatts (GW) today.

The sector is currently growing by about 1 GW a year, equivalent to about 200,000 customers annually, and he expects that rate to jump in the coming years.

In January, the CCSA set a new target of providing community solar access to 10 million Americans by the end of the decade, or about 30 GW.

Community solar has no set definition, said Nate Hausman, who manages the clean energy markets program at the World Resources Institute, a think-tank.

"Unlike with rooftop solar, where it's clear what you're getting, subscriptions can be structured in different ways," he said.

Payments can come upfront or over time. Some projects are offered at a premium as a way to support clean energy, while others aim to provide savings to low-income customers.

Whatever the approach, they are likely to become increasingly important to satisfy cities and states' new sustainability goals.

"To reach the level of market penetration (cities) aim for, they're going to have to involve the low- and moderate-income markets. It will involve reaching beyond the standard customer base," Hausman said.

As in Washington, that is prompting local officials to look widely for potential sites, whether on roofs, parking lot canopies or on contaminated or other low-value land.

Federal legislation passed last year will create new tax credits for community solar projects, including money earmarked for installations on affordable housing complexes and in former fossil fuel communities, Hausman said.

Twenty-two states have some kind of program to incentivize or facilitate community solar programs, according to the CCSA, including a California law adopted in September.

States that have not passed these laws will find it hard to tap the new federal funding, while those with such laws could experience a potentially chaotic gold rush, Hausman warned.

Neighborhood cooperatives

Community solar is not the only way to expand solar energy's customer base: neighbors are also increasingly banding together to reduce prices by buying in bulk and sharing the often complex research and preparations required.

Such neighborhood cooperatives tend to be focused on single-family homes and occasionally small businesses, said Ben Delman, communications director for Solar United Neighbors, which helps communities set up such groups in a dozen states.

The group also works on community solar, and recently launched what Delman says is a first-of-its-kind platform to help people find and join such projects in their areas.

The priority for both approaches is stabilizing residents.

"Energy burden is a huge challenge for low-income homeowners," Delman said. "They might own a home but not have much income coming in, so by cutting their energy bills, this is a way we can keep families in their homes."

For more than 30 years, Carmela Thomas has lived in the single-family home that she inherited from her father in Indianapolis, Indiana.

In 2020, she participated in a solar cooperative and a city program for low-income residents, and had solar panels installed on her detached garage - a step she took "primarily to save money".

The setup saved her more than $550 on electricity bills last year alone, she said.

But what started out as a way to reduce her spending now brings her wider satisfaction.

"As I gained more information, I realized that I'm doing my part to conserve energy and try to reverse global warming," she said.

Carey L. Biron wrote this article for Context.


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New Mexico conservation advocates say the state's budget awaiting the governor's signature would make great strides in addressing climate change and protecting public health.

Justin Garoutte, advocate, climate and energy with the group Conservation Voters New Mexico, highlighted 21 bills awaiting the governor's signature that will protect air, land, water and wildlife resources. He said Senate Bill 48, known as the Community Benefit Fund, would be a groundbreaking investment in adapting to climate change through locally driven projects that strengthen communities and create jobs, including jobs for those employed in the extraction industry.

"So, helping workers in the oil and gas industry or other industries transition to more clean jobs - there's 17-million that's going to the workforce solutions department for clean-energy worker training," he explained.

SB 48, which passed by a vote of 39 to 26, would provide grants for infrastructure and clean energy projects that reduce pollution, improve resiliency against extreme weather, and enhance grid reliability in cities and towns across the state. The governor has until April 11th to approve spending for fiscal year 2026, which begins on July 1st and ends on June 30th next year.

Garoutte said with state guidance, individual communities could implement projects unique to their region, prioritizing rural and underserved communities.

"The end goal is ensuring that we as a state continue advancing to protect our communities from the impacts of climate change that we're feeling now, right? We have to adapt, we have to do mitigation efforts, and we just want to keep moving forward as a state when we don't see that at the federal level," he continued.

Legislation included in the next budget includes two transportation provisions. $60 million for electric vehicle charging infrastructure for school districts and improved pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure are part of the spending plan.


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Large, energy-intense buildings used in Bitcoin mining, cloud computing and artificial intelligence data processing industries could become more common in West Virginia under legislation being considered by lawmakers.

Advocacy groups said high-impact data centers pose environmental and public health risks for communities.

Morgan King, climate and energy program manager for the West Virginia Citizen Action Group, pointed out Mingo, Mason and Tucker counties have already seen data center growth, along with an increased strain on natural resources. She added under House Bill 2014, such facilities would not be required to follow local zoning, land use or noise ordinances.

"These centers can take up anywhere from three to four square miles of land that will be repurposed for construction of these buildings for data centers," King explained. "Even more, they require an intense water use and energy use."

The bill would allow companies to develop independent energy grids using coal and gas. Supporters of the legislation, including West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey, argued the bill would bring significant investment to the state.

The bill places no limits on how much of the water supply these facilities can draw upon. King noted in neighboring Virginia, some data centers are using nearly a million gallons of water a day.

"It doesn't put any restrictions on the facility, which could have an impact on local water resources," King emphasized. "It also requires that the power generation of coal throughout the state be remaining at a 69% base load."

She added there is increased exposure to light and sound pollution for residents and disruption of wildlife habitats.

"One of these centers is posed for Tucker County, right outside of Davis, that's in one of the most beautiful natural areas of the state," King observed. "If we put a data center in there, it's going to create a lot of noise and light pollution that will impact local ecosystems."

Energy experts are concerned data centers could lead to higher electricity bills for Mountain State households, and worsen communities' climate change resilience.


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As Congress debates cuts to offset tax-cut extensions, the future of the Clean Fuels Production Tax Credit remains uncertain, with potential impacts on Michigan's growing clean-fuel industry. The Clean Fuels Production Tax credit was established under the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act. It offers 20 cents per gallon for nonaviation fuels and 35 cents for aviation fuels which cut emissions by 50% compared with petroleum. Michigan has six key clean-fuel and alternative-energy initiatives, including Sustainable Aviation Fuel.

Alex Muresianu, senior policy analyst for Tax Foundation, estimates that repealing the credit could net about $12.8 billion over a decade based on Treasury projections, although he questions the math.

"That was based on some estimates from Treasury. It doesn't make sense to take a revenue cost estimate from Treasury and assume it will one-for-one translate into revenue raised from reversing a policy," she said.

Critics call credit initiative costly, favoring big companies while possibly raising fuel prices and distorting the market. It started on January 1st and is slated to run through 2027 unless extended.

Congress is divided on the future of these tax credits. While some want to eliminate them altogether to offset tax cuts, others warn that doing so could harm energy investments and job growth.

Nan Swift, a resident fellow of the Governance Program at R Street Institute, believes that right now, Congress is likely far from debating the finer details, and the tax credit is just one of those specifics.

"Certainly, it's on a a wish list for a lot of members, but we don't even know yet if the House and Senate can find agreement between their two-bill or one-bill plans," she explained.

Shortly after the Clean Fuels Production Tax Credit was enacted, debates arose about its cost, effectiveness and fairness over the broader economy.


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