Full Measure After Hours: Solar Farms vs. Food Farms

Host: Cheryl Akison
Episode: After Hours: Solar Farms vs. Food Farms (From the Archives)
Release Date: May 29, 2025

Introduction

In this compelling episode of Full Measure After Hours, host Cheryl Akison delves into the burgeoning trend of converting agricultural land into solar and wind farms. As the United States accelerates its transition to green energy, significant unintended consequences have emerged, particularly concerning food production and farmland preservation. This episode explores the economic and environmental ramifications of this shift, featuring insightful interviews with key stakeholders from Wisconsin.

The Green Energy Push and Its Consequences

Cheryl Akison sets the stage by highlighting the aggressive push towards renewable energy sources, largely driven by government incentives and taxpayer-funded subsidies. While the intent is to mitigate climate change, this rapid transition has led to unexpected challenges:

• Energy Capacity Shortfalls: Both the U.S. and Europe face inadequate green energy infrastructure, resulting in skyrocketing energy prices, shortages, rationing, and occasional blackouts.

• Land Use Conflicts: Vast expanses of farmland are being repurposed for solar and wind farms, leading to concerns about the long-term impact on food production.

Congressman Tom Tiffany on Policy and Agriculture

One of the episode's focal points is an interview with Wisconsin Congressman Tom Tiffany, who articulates the crux of the issue:

[03:19] "Local farmer in the district who said that I can get paid up to $1,000 an acre to convert my farm into solar or wind production rather than growing food. And so it raised just a lot of questions and we've been following up since."

Tiffany explains that standard agricultural leases range from $150 to $200 per acre, whereas renewable energy developers offer up to $1,000 per acre, making it economically unfeasible for farmers to decline these lucrative offers. He attributes this disparity to substantial federal subsidies, sometimes amounting to $50,000 per acre, which distort market incentives.

[05:25] "Typical rents are 150 to $200 an acre for agricultural land. For somebody that's producing, you know, corn, soybeans, whatever the crop may be, they're now being offered $1,000 an acre. And the reason these wind and solar developers can offer $1,000 an acre is there's these rich subsidies that are coming from the federal government incentivizing this."

Tiffany expresses concern over the lack of thorough planning, emphasizing that the current incentives favor intermittent energy sources without sufficient consideration for their long-term sustainability and impact on vital agricultural land.

[08:32] "So let's say somewhere in the country that it's out in the desert or wherever you can still build these facilities. You just can't build it on productive agricultural land as we're seeing in the Midwest."

Despite introducing legislation to address these issues, Tiffany remains skeptical about its passage under the current congressional leadership, specifically citing Speaker Nancy Pelosi's lack of support.

Voices from the Ground: Landowner Perspectives

Tara Vaspi: Personal and Community Impacts

Tara Vaspi, a Wisconsin landowner, provides a personal account of the adverse effects of nearby solar farms:

[09:46] "My concern is that the drainage is going to just be eliminated which is really going to impact the future of this property... There's nothing I can do about it." ([09:46])

Vaspi highlights issues such as disrupted water drainage systems and the permanence of solar installations, which negate promises of reverting land back to agricultural use. She criticizes the approach of solar companies, like Invenergy, for deploying large-scale projects without adequate community consultation or regulatory oversight.

[10:49] "It's literally the story that's happening over and over and over. And communities are not ready for this. They don't have setbacks, they don't have ordinances, they don't have, you know, there's just not ready to deal with these." ([10:49])

Her broader concerns extend to national food security, questioning the sustainability of prioritizing renewable energy over maintaining and expanding food production capabilities.

Elizabeth Groves: Preserving Prime Agricultural Land

Elizabeth Groves, another Wisconsin landowner, echoes similar sentiments, focusing on the classification and value of prime agricultural land:

[16:28] "My main concern is that the majority of this area that they're wanting to put the solar power installations is prime agricultural land... it's an actual USDA classification that looks at the soil, that looks at the environment, and they give it that designation based on the chemical and physical aspects of the area and its ability to have high yield food production." ([16:28])

Groves emphasizes the alarming trend of farmland loss, citing USDA reports indicating a steady decline in operational farms and acreage. She underscores the critical timing, especially amid global food shortages exacerbated by geopolitical tensions such as the conflict in Ukraine.

[18:00] "With what we've seen over the last two years with food shortages and supply chain issues and being told, you know, by our higher levels of government that that could possibly get worse with what's happening in Ukraine, it just doesn't seem like a good solution to take some of our most productive agricultural lands, not even just in Wisconsin, but, you know, throughout the entire Midwest and the country, out of production." ([18:00])

Her advocacy calls for a reassessment of land use policies to prioritize food production over less reliable and more resource-intensive energy sources.

Bill Polkinghorne: Economic Realities Faced by Farmers

Former farmer Bill Polkinghorne shares his personal journey from agriculture to leasing his land for solar energy:

[22:08] "This way they're gonna have the farm, there's gonna be a good income. It'll buy them a real nice Christmas present, each one of them every year." ([22:08])

Polkinghorne illustrates the economic pressures that drive farmers to accept high-paying solar leases despite their commitment to farming. While he acknowledges the financial relief these deals provide, he remains cautiously optimistic about the overall impact on national food supplies, believing that the current scale of land conversion is manageable but recognizing the potential for future escalation.

[24:23] "In the farm economy there's a surplus. In every. Everything there is, everything growing or raised or whatever, there's a surplus. And it's a matter of how our government has been treating that surplus. I'm not worried about our country ever going short of food." ([24:23])

However, he also notes operational challenges faced during the development of solar projects, such as delays caused by international supply chain issues.

Policy Implications and Future Directions

The episode underscores the urgent need for policy reevaluation to balance the pursuit of renewable energy with the preservation of agricultural land. Key takeaways include:

• Subsidy Reevaluation: Current federal subsidies heavily favor renewable energy projects, making them economically superior to traditional farming leases. Revising these incentives could restore a more equitable playing field for farmers.

• Land Use Regulations: Implementing stringent criteria for land conversion can prevent the loss of prime agricultural land and ensure that renewable energy projects are situated in less productive areas.

• Sustainable Energy Planning: Developing comprehensive energy infrastructure that accounts for capacity, reliability, and long-term sustainability is crucial to avoid the pitfalls of restricted energy sources.

Conclusion

Cheryl Akison concludes the episode by emphasizing the complexity of the green energy transition and its multifaceted impact on society. She invites listeners to engage with the full investigative report airing on January 22, 2023 and encourages further exploration of the topic through the Full Measure News platform.

[25:12] "There's a lot more to the story, plus some amazing scenics from Wisconsin that you can see in my report Sunday on full measure." ([25:12])

The episode serves as a crucial examination of the delicate balance between advancing renewable energy and safeguarding the agricultural foundations essential for national and global food security.

Additional Resources

• Full Measure News: For a replay of the investigative report, visit FullMeasure.News and search for "solar."
• Supporting Independent Journalism: Visit cherylakkisson.com to explore products that support independent reporting.

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