Wisconsin is about to make history with solar energy. The Wisconsin Public Service Commission (PSC) has approved the record-breaking 1.3-gigawatt Vista Sands Solar Project.
According to Factor This, it will be the largest solar farm built in Wisconsin and one of the most sizable ever constructed in the United States.
"Today, the PSC approved the biggest step toward curbing Wisconsin's carbon emissions in the state's history," Clean Wisconsin general counsel Katie Nekola said in a statement, per Factor This.
Construction is set to begin in March 2025, with an anticipated end date of December 2028. When the solar farm is ready, it will be the source of clean energy for about 200,000 residences.
A Quantum Energy estimate, shared by North American Clean Energy, expects the site to reduce carbon dioxide production by about 1.6 million metric tons. It will also allow for 1,216 gigawatt-hours less natural gas generation and 950 GWh less coal generation.
"We're not really taking the farmland out of commission," Nick Cohen, president and CEO of Doral Renewables — the owner of Vista Sands Solar LLC — told Factor This. "We're farming the sun."
In addition to producing clean energy, "farming the sun" will add to the local economy by creating about 500 construction jobs and 50 permanent ones.
By 2050, Wisconsin aims to achieve net-zero emissions — a strategy to cut carbon pollution to only tiny residual emissions that nature can quickly absorb and safely store for good use.
Since solar panels produce electricity without creating planet-warming pollution by cutting out the need for dirty fuels, the state is taking tangible steps to meet this goal. It is doing so by working with the community and not just giving directives.
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Energy independence ⚡ "We feel very connected to the community, and we know the names of all the farming families in this project and their stories," Doral project manager Ed Baptista told Factor This.
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This connection will aid in addressing community concerns, such as the site's proximity to threatened prairie chickens in the Buena Vista Grassland State Wildlife Area. Luckily, Doral Renewables has agreed construction won't occur within 500 feet of the wildlife grounds.
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