The state of Illinois has been investing in its future in sustainable energy with a particular focus on solar. Back in January, Governor JB Pritzker signed into law legislation that would prevent counties from enacting local ordinances that would ban local wind and solar projects.
Illinois is one of the 38 states with a renewable energy standard in place. In Illinois, that standard requires 25% of the state’s energy to come from renewable sources by the year 2025. For that to happen, the Solar Energy Industries Association reports Illinois’ solar capacity to grow 1,700% in the next five years.
Troy Coziahr, manager of Hertz Ag Management shares what they are seeing as solar companies work to expand solar use.
“In our office, as a farm management company, it’s daily. Every single day we are getting solicitations in the mail from energy companies all over the place. What they are doing right now, I don’t mean this as a negative comment necessarily but it’s kinda a fishing expedition,” said Coziahr. “They are just casting out a line every direction that they possibly can, trying to see where they can secure blocks of land that would have interested landowners that they can consolidate to come up with agreements to put up wind turbines or solar panels.”
Illinois has invested more than $2 billion to expand solar energy in the state.
