“Developer/owner: NextEra Energy Resources
Vegetation: Prairie Restorations, Inc.
Location: Lyon County, Minnesota
Size: 62 MW (355 acres, scorecard)
Constructed in 2016, the 62 MW Marshall Solar Energy Project is located on 355 acres of agricultural land in Lyon County, three miles east of Marshall, Minnesota. Partly in response to several visual renderings of the project showing acres of closely mowed suburban-style turfgrass, the proposed project received little support and drew active pushback from residents who were concerned about the loss of prime farmland and how it could affect their property values.
A group of four neighbors hired an attorney to present their case to state regulators. Due to the project’s location on prime agricultural soils, the state’s Administrative Law Judges recommended that any site permit include an Agricultural Impact Mitigation Plan and a Vegetation Management Plan that required establishment and maintenance of ground cover that is beneficial to pollinators and other wildlife. Marshall Solar worked with native landscape specialists and staff from the departments of Agriculture and Natural Resources to craft the Agricultural Impact Mitigation and Vegetation Management plans. Following a delay of several months while the project’s use of prime farmland was studied, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission determined that the project complied with state rules to protect prime agricultural land and voted unanimously to approve the plan.”
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Davis, Rob. Fresh Energy 22 June 2021.