Solar and wind farms aren’t going away anytime soon. Although green energy is the wave of the future not only in the U.S. but in the world, it has raised the ire of homeowners and some politicians.
Kankakee County and the surrounding region has seen an uptick in the building of solar and wind farms. Homeowners and businesses are beginning to see the benefits of green energy, and we applaud those efforts. There will continue to be arguments for and against the burning of fossil fuels and its impact on climate change, but that’s a fight for another day.
What solar can provide for homeowners, businesses and schools and churches is a savings in the ever-increasing energy costs. We’re all for saving money while also helping preserve the environment for future generations.
Recently the Bourbonnais village board gave the green light to construct a small solar farm at St. Paul’s Church and School over the objections of some residents in the adjacent Meadowbrook subdivision. The solar farm was also approved by the village’s planning and zoning committee and economic and community development commission.
St. Paul’s annual electricity bill will be reduced from nearly $100,000 to about $5,000. That’s substantial savings.
Some of the objections were about concerns of possible leakage of chemicals from solar panels, aesthetics and the loss of property values.
According to the Clean Grid Alliance, contrary to common solar myths about harmful chemicals, the materials used to make solar panels are sealed and contained so they do not negatively affect the surrounding area. Solar panels contain a variety of materials, including silicon and different types of metals.
The biggest concern about solar panels is how to recycle them when they get to the end of their life cycle, approximately 25 to 30 years. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, by 2030, the United States is expected to have as much as 1 million total tons of solar panel waste.
However, it’s also a myth that solar panels are harmful when in operation. The solar inverter will create some electric field radiation but only similar to the level of a fluorescent tube. Solar panels safely generate electricity without creating any air emissions.
As far as solar farms affecting property values, there have been recent studies conducted. CohnReznick LLP, a global network of independent accounting and consulting firms, did a property value impact study for a proposed solar farm in Kane County in 2018.
It looked at seven solar farms, four in Indiana, one in Illinois (near Streator), one in Minnesota and one in Colorado. It analyzed 24 adjoining property sales in test areas and 82 comparable sales in control areas, over the a six-year period
Its research and analyses of the existing solar farm uses, the surrounding areas, and an extensive market database, concluded there was no consistent negative impact to adjacent property that could be attributed to proximity to the adjacent solar farm. That included unit sale prices. The conclusion was also confirmed by numerous county assessors who have also investigated the potential impact.
Solar panels provide clean, renewable energy from the sun, and their prevalence as an energy source has been growing. In 2020, solar panels provided about 40% of new U.S. electric generation capacity, compared to just 4% in 2010. Overall, 3.3% of electricity in the United States was produced using solar technologies in 2020. Solar farms will continue to expand in the U.S., Illinois and specifically in Kankakee County, which has been at the forefront in this region of Illinois.
We support this form of renewable energy in greater Kankakee, and Kankakee Community College is one of the state’s leaders in offering programs for solar and wind energy. It’s preparing the workforce for a growing industry right here in Kankakee County, and the loss of farmland is negligible.