A diverse group of interests including The Nature Conservancy and the Solar Energy Industries Association have agreed on policies to advance large, utility-scale solar photovoltaic power development.
The agreement, “Collaboration Agreement on Large-Scale U.S. Solar Development: Integrating Climate, Conservation and Community” and brokered by Stanford University’s Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment, is designed to bridge a conflict among large-scale solar development and “small is beautiful” advocates of rooftop solar, community solar, and microgrids.
“Major U.S. solar projects are critical to fighting climate change but are increasingly opposed across the nation due to significant community and land conservation concerns,” said Stanford energy scholar Dan Reicher, who launched and leads the Solar Uncommon Dialogue. Reicher, a lawyer, as Department of Energy assistant secretary for energy efficiency and renewable energy in the Clinton administration. Before that, he worked for the Natural Resources Defense Council.
