There is a new type of farm spreading across the Kansas horizon. These farms do not have crops to cultivate, instead they harvest the wind and sunrays.
Wind and solar farms have steadily increased across the state the last few years. Since the farms are large, a lot of renewable energy companies target rural areas in the United States to produce energy.
Lona DuVall, director of the Finney County Economic Development Corporation, said energy production is likely the future of the region, and her county can be at the forefront, if county residents choose to be.
“We have excellent wind and we have excellent solar. More days of sunshine than San Diego, California, for heaven’s sake,” DuVall said.
Some agree with DuVall that energy production is a future economic driver for western Kansas, a region that has survived off mostly agriculture alone for decades. In more recent years, it’s hard to drive through the region without seeing an expanding field of wind turbines standing tall across the Plains.
For small towns, these projects could be a source of economic growth, something rural Kansas counties have been searching for. But, skepticism has also grown alongside wind and solar, and that is putting some of the potential growth on hold.
It’s not just the wind and solar farms growing, it’s also the country’s demand for energy.
As data centers grow, energy demands in the U.S. are projected to increase 25% by 2030.
“Our job is to create an economic future for our area,” DuVall said. “We don’t tell anyone what to build. We just present the opportunities that are there, and there is a lot of potential in producing all types of energy.”
For a rural county, these projects could bring much needed tax revenue or donations in the form of payments from the companies.
When a wind farm is greenlit, it usually brings in hundreds of temporary construction jobs to build the turbines. Then 5 to 15 more permanent jobs to maintain them.
Another benefit from wind and solar energy is the lease payments to landowners. When these energy projects come in, they almost always set up on farmland or ranchland, meaning they pay to lease the land. Farmers could make thousands of dollars in extra income.
That can be a big deal for a Kansas county. Many of the counties face a difficult task, finding economic growth opportunities in a region that is projected to see steady population declines.
Just south of Finney County, Seward County Economic Development Director Eli Svaty said there are billions of dollars to be made in rural America right now.
“Our existing infrastructure is maxed out. We’ve got a history of this extractive economy with gas and oil and ag. Here’s a chance to balance out markets that are historically up and down and give us some consistent income,” Svaty said.
But Svaty ran into pushback from a group of locals. Those people have spoken against the county bringing in any wind projects and local elected officials have listened. That’s something happening across the country.
