The Biden administration has updated the roadmap for solar development to 22 million acres of federal lands in the US West.
  • Montagge
    26•5 months ago

    Which will eventually be sold to private entities and public land will continue to disappear. Just like all of the public land Weyerhauser has gobbled up and shut off access. Oh I’m sorry you could pay $350 for a yearly pass that they only put a handful of out.

  • @[email protected]
    20•5 months ago

    We don’t really need new area for solar. We’ve got plenty, and I mean plenty, of developed hard surfaces panels can be put on top of.

    Also, they already usually have infrastructural connection to power, so thats a bonus.

  • @[email protected]
    14•5 months ago

    How many acres of parking lots does the federal government own that could accomplish this without disturbing the environment?

    • @vinylshrapnelEnglish
      9•5 months ago

      This is way bigger than you think it is.

      • @[email protected]
        8•5 months ago

        It’s just frustrating when people talk about solar they seem to be ok with wrecking the environment. It would be relatively easy to retrofit parking lots.

        People also talk about turning roads and sidewalks into solar. It’s like parking is some sort of untouchable structure that we can’t demand be part of the solution.

        • andrewEnglish
          3•5 months ago

          I had to use the environment to destroy the environment. It nearly killed me.

        • @[email protected]
          2•5 months ago

          It’s much more expensive and slower to put a solar roof on a parking lot then it is to drop it in a field.

    • @[email protected]
      3•5 months ago

      Good point. I was gonna say, acres upon acres of solar farms would be equivalent to paving the land they’re on. And unlike the African Sahara, we don’t have much in the way of actual wasteland with zero life around here.

      Someone further down the comment chain suggested parking lots. Rooftops would be a better move too - just need a tax incentive and we’re off to the races.

  • @vinylshrapnelEnglish
    10•5 months ago

    For reference, that is an area larger than South Carolina and nearly as large as Maine.

  • @[email protected]English
    5•5 months ago

    Solar is great, but decentralization is the way. Not this centralized, metered, power centralizing “green energy”.