MAINE — A new law passed in 2023, LD 1881 will require permits from the Maine Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Conservation [DACF] and additional fees for any solar or wind energy developments five acres or more in size proposed on ‘high-value agricultural land’ after Sept. 1.

Rep. Scott Landry, a Democrat from Farmington sponsored the bill. He worked with David Trahan, executive director Sportsman Alliance of Maine and Elizah Donahue, former lobbyist for Audubon and co-sponsors to develop the bill.

“Farmington and statewide, the whole Route 2 corridor is getting loaded with [solar],” he recently told the Livermore Falls Advertiser. “The whole idea is we are not against solar but if you are going to be putting it in, we do not want you to be using prime agricultural land or wildlife habitats,” he said. “If you are going to do that, you are going to pay for it.”

Senator Russell Black of Wilton co-sponsored the bill. According to the agricultural census from 2017 to 2022 84,000 acres of agricultural land was lost in Maine, he said. Only a small percentage of Maine’s farmland is prime agricultural land, he noted.

One local farm which has leased land for solar energy production is the Souther farm in Livermore Falls. The 14,040-panel array is expected to produce roughly 6,478,200 kilowatt hours of clean energy annually, offsetting more than 6,348,000 pounds of carbon pollution from regional fossil fuel power plants each year, according to information presented prior to a ribbon cutting ceremony in March 2022. The project was the first in Maine to provide most [96%] of its solar energy to public schools in the state, the release noted.

Regional School Unit 73, which has schools in Jay and Livermore and its central offices in Livermore Falls is one of the districts participating. RSU 9, which has schools in Farmington, New Sharon and Wilton is another.

“I would not have liked to depend on my hay crop for my taxes last year,” owner Evelyn Norton said in information emailed to the Livermore Falls Advertiser recently. “If you’re farming you almost need a guaranteed income because it’s not always a given that it’s going to be a profitable year.”

Last year instead of harvesting the typical three hay cuttings, only one was possible due to the challenging weather conditions, Norton noted.

“At first people thought we were going to ruin the look of the farm, but if we didn’t make that decision [on solar] there wasn’t going to be any farm to enjoy,” she noted. Without the consistent income generated from solar farming, her family would probably have been forced to sell some land to make ends meet, she added.

The new law has directed DACF to adopt routine technical rules regarding solar energy permitting definitions, administration, standards, delegation of authority, and enforcement. As part of its rulemaking effort, DACF, in consultation with the Governor’s Energy Office and the Department of Environmental Protection, must:

• Define high-value agricultural land;
• Define dual-use agricultural and solar production;
• Establish tiers of high-value agricultural land with variable compensation amounts to be administered by DEP;
• Establish rules to define the administrative process for permitting;
• Develop standards for dual-use solar;
• Establish standards and conditions for delegating permitting authority to the Land • Use Planning Commission [LUPC] and municipalities; and
• Establish permit program enforcement parameters.

Landry said he hasn’t seen anything about the rules or fees yet.

He pointed out there will be a benefit for farms incorporating solar projects with agricultural production. “If you are going to run a herd of sheep underneath the panels, that is agricultural,” he noted. “There is going to be a benefit for that.”

Landry admitted it is tough for farmers. “They have a hard enough time surviving and solar is an easy way, it helps them out,” he added. “Once solar is there, you have lost that land for 20 years anyway.”