Solar farms will have priority for cleaning up brownfield sites, under a new law aimed at making Rhode Island’s transition to cleaner forms of energy more affordable.
The Renewable Ready program will use federal money to help offset the costs of preparing certain sites for renewable energy development, including on brownfield sites. Brownfields are former industrial areas where potential or actual contamination complicates development.
The Office of Energy Resources will identify eligible sites, including rooftops of large buildings, and areas next to major roads. The Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank will then award grants to those who want to develop solar farms on those sites.
The program is expected to lower the costs for developers and enable them to build more solar farms, which will help the state meet its goal of being carbon neutral by 2050.
“Siting solar installations on brownfields and other disturbed sites helps us to meet our Act on Climate goals while protecting our natural resources,” said Representative June Speakman, who sponsored the legislation. “However, there are significant costs to municipalities and state agencies to prepare these sites and connect them to our electrical grid. This act makes use of available federal dollars to help offset these costs and keep Rhode Island’s transition to green energy moving forward.”
The state says the program will also help to create jobs and protect the environment.
“Passage of the Renewable Ready Program and Fund encourages the environmentally sound expansion of our solar industry by incentivizing development on previously disturbed sites while investing in local clean energy jobs,” said Erica Hammond, field director at Climate Jobs RI. “We thank Chairwoman DiMario and Representative Speakman and the Rhode Island General Assembly for their leadership and support on this important initiative that will help us meet our Act on Climate goals.”
Generative artificial intelligence (AI) assisted a What’sUpNewp journalist with the reporting included in this story.
