New York solar industry association lauds its partnership with farmers

Since the signing of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act in 2019, there has been an influx of solar farms into New York, a change some aren’t completely happy with. 

Last week, Republican state Assemblymember Steve Hawley spoke with Capital Tonight about a letter he sent to Gov. Kathy Hochul urging her to stop two large solar farms in western New Yorok and return them to farmland. 

His letter echoed a notion Capital Tonight heard at the New York State Fair: That the state should stop farmers from selling their land to solar developers because the state is losing its agricultural legacy.

According to the state comptroller, between 2012 and 2022, New York lost 9% of its farmland, and 14% of its farms.  

But according to Noah Ginsburg, executive director of the New York Solar Energy Industries Association, only 1% of the state’s farmland would be leased to solar developers if every project was given the green light. Ginsburg also told Capital Tonight that, because of artificial intelligence, solar energy has never been more critical in New York, which currently powers 1,157,226 homes in the state.