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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A survey of 760 registered Latino voters found 87% of Latinos support projects to produce a cleaner, natural world.

The poll, conducted in 10 states, including Illinois, was commissioned by the Hispanic Access Foundation. The organization creates outreach efforts to inspire individuals to improve themselves, their families and their communities.

Vanessa Muñoz, waterways program manager for the Hispanic Access Foundation, said the survey showed disparities and injustices in the Latino community and is designed to empower community leaders' push for change and boost issue awareness. She noted the survey's timing is crucial.

"We are in an election year," Muñoz emphasized. "The survey results can play a critical role in shaping and informing policy discussions and ensuring that the needs and perspective of Latino voters are considered in the electoral process."

Among those surveyed, 91% of Latinos support policies for future Congressional sessions such as new national monuments, national parks or wildlife refuges to protect areas for outdoor recreation.

Environmentalists are seeing an increase in Latino advocacy in the challenge to clean up U.S. land and waters, especially in the Mississippi River area.

Muñoz explained one goal is the Biden Administration's 30 by 30 plan, which calls for conserving 30% of America's lands, fresh water and oceans by the year 2030.

"We found that 86% of Latinos think that PFAS or forever chemicals are a major threat to the Mississippi River," Muñoz outlined. "Another one was that 93% of Latinos believe that trash dumped in rivers and streams is a major threat to the Mississippi River."

Other survey respondents were based in Arkansas, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee.

Public comment ends this week for a permit needed for a high-profile oil pipeline project in northern Wisconsin. Opponents, including tribal voices, as well as supporters, have laid out recent organizing efforts ahead of an application decision. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will eventually decide on an environmental permit sought by Canadian firm Enbridge to re-route a section of its Line 5 pipeline around the Bad River Reservation. Tribal leaders have been engaged in a legal fight with the company over its existing line, which currently covers 12 miles of reservation land.

Gussie Lord, Earthjustice managing attorney of the Tribal Partnerships Program, represents the tribe and says the new plan fails to ease concerns.

"We know that this reroute is not a solution. It's a false solution to the dangers of the current pipeline. In fact, it really extends the dangers of the pipeline and increases the threat of a devastating oil spill, both to the Bad River Reservation's watershed and Lake Superior watershed," Lord explained.

Her group and other environmental organizations say more than 150,000 comments are being submitted that reflect these concerns. A separate coalition of labor, business and agricultural groups says it gathered roughly 14,000 signatures in support of the re-route. Ahead of public comment closing tomorrow, the coalition sent a letter arguing the construction would be a big economic win, with the new line aiding regional propane supplies.

Some supporters tout the potential jobs and related benefits.

Jason Wilhite, activism team lead with the outdoor apparel company Patagonia, contends any major spill could harm water recreation and all the business activity it creates.

"Put simply, a rupture of the Line 5 pipeline would have a devastating impact on our regional economy," he explained.

In an emailed statement, Enbridge said it's committed to extensive protective measures to minimize and mitigate project impacts. Tribal advocates say they are especially worried about the potential effect on wild rice beds. It's not clear when the Army Corps of Engineers will decide on the application. Other permits are needed for the proposed re-route.


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A new project is set to help North Carolina communities address environmental justice and climate equity.

The city of Charlotte, in collaboration with environmental groups, is launching the GreenPrints Initiative - to promote sustainable housing, improve air quality and develop green infrastructure in under-resourced neighborhoods.

CleanAIRE NC is among the key organizations involved.

According to the group's community engagement coordinator Kennedy Williams, the initiative's goal is to address the lack of sustainability and educate communities that need it the most - and are often overlooked.

"A lot of people are experiencing issues related to climate change that they don't know what climate change is or necessarily what sustainability looks like," said Williams. "So making sure that we're introducing sustainability and then also making sure that every aspect of every resident's lifestyle has sustainability at its core."

Williams explained that much of the initiative's efforts will be concentrated in what are known as the Opportunity Corridors of Beatties Ford Road and Freedom Drive, as well as Wilkinson Boulevard.

These areas have been identified as priorities for the deployment of sustainable solutions and community engagement.

A key component of the GreenPrints Initiative is air-quality monitoring, a project spearheaded by CleanAIRE NC.

Williams said sensors will be placed throughout the target neighborhoods to provide valuable data to community members, nonprofits and regulatory agencies.

"Low-cost air pollution sensors will be distributed to air keepers, who are basically like volunteer community members who are interested in maintaining air monitoring," said Williams. "The data from these sensors will be available through CleanAIRE's air-keeper dashboard, and this will really help better understand their geographic data and also their environmental data."

Williams noted that the GreenPrints Initiative is not just about implementing changes but also about listening to the community.

CleanAIRE NC plans to hold a forum on October 19 to gather input from residents about their sustainability concerns and priorities, ensuring that the initiative meets the needs of those most affected.




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