Local Pushback is Undermining Albany’s Clean Energy Ambitions

New York’s aggressive pursuit of an entirely renewable energy grid is facing significant challenges.

More precisely, it is encountering resistance from New Yorkers who are unwilling to see their farms, forests, and neighborhoods replaced by vast arrays of solar panels and towering 600-foot wind turbines.

A recent report prepared for the New York Affordable Clean Power Alliance—comprising solar and wind energy advocates and independent power producers—reveals that New York’s electric grid confronts “obstacles in maintaining reliability” mainly due to its inability to meet “ambitious renewable targets.”

The state has “fallen short” of its eco-friendly objectives, attributed to “local opposition” and “limitations in transmission capacity.”

Local resistance? That’s hardly news.

While mainstream media may overlook it, New York has long been a hub of opposition against large-scale solar and wind initiatives for nearly two decades.

Back in 2007, the towns of Meredith and Bovina in the Catskills enacted ordinances banning wind energy projects as residents raised concerns over “views, health, safety, noise, and property values.”

I established the Renewable Rejection Database to monitor the opposition to alternative energy sources. Since 2015, New York towns and counties have officially documented at least 78 rejections or limitations on wind and solar projects.

This indicates that nearly 10% of the database’s total of 793 rejections have occurred in New York, with only Ohio showing a higher number.

Proponents of alternative energy recognize why rural inhabitants are resisting.

As Anne Reynolds, the former executive director of the Alliance for Clean Energy New York, stated in 2018, “I personally think the arguments against wind energy stem from people’s dislike of seeing the turbines.”

New York’s climate strategy, which was signed into law in 2019 by Governor Andrew Cuomo, was little more than an unrealistic aspiration.

The law mandates that the state secure 70% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030 and achieve 100% zero-carbon-emission electricity by 2040.

Realizing this objective, according to the plan, would necessitate “aggressive expansion of existing renewable energy” and battery capacity.

Just how aggressive? Quite a lot.

Presently, New York has about 2,600 megawatts of wind generation capacity but has only added approximately 1,000 megawatts of new capacity since 2012.

There are about 6,000 megawatts of solar capacity in the state—far from sufficient to meet peak demands during hot summer months when statewide usage exceeds 33,000 megawatts.

In 2020, the backlash against large-scale solar and wind energy prompted Albany to enact a law empowering state officials to override local zoning regulations and compel communities to accept renewable projects against their wishes.

However, even this bureaucratic maneuver may not be sufficient to avert New York’s impending electricity crisis.

The report from NYACPA indicates that the New York City region will “face a generation shortfall beginning in 2033,” driven by rising peak demand and the scheduled retirement of existing generation sources.

In plain terms: NYC is poised for blackouts and brownouts soon.

On top of potential electricity shortages, New York consumers are grappling with rising costs attributed to the state’s renewable initiatives.

In February, ConEd proposed a rate hike that could increase the average monthly gas and electricity bill by $154.

This will add to the financial strain on New Yorkers, who already pay about 24.4 cents per kilowatt-hour, nearly 48% more than the national average.

Further cost increases loom, as the state’s climate plan relies heavily on an ambitious expansion of offshore wind energy—arguably one of the costliest methods of energy production.

Ratepayers will also bear the burden of approximately $26 billion in high-voltage transmission projects required to support more wind and solar capacities.

It’s apparent: New Yorkers have been misled.

For years, climate advocates and their various allies in Albany have insisted that the state could operate entirely on alternative energy if only there was sufficient political resolve.

But even supporters of solar and wind energy are now being forced to concede that their efforts are thwarted by local and community opposition to wind farms, solar installations, and increasingly, to lithium-ion battery storage facilities as well.

Adding to the rejections, in February, the Town Board in Dunkirk cast a 3-to-1 vote against a proposed 3.75 megawatt solar project.

Town Supervisor Priscilla Penfold, who opposed the project, stated it would undermine “the agricultural character of the town.”

This rejection will likely not be the last.

Robert Bryce is an author, film producer, and public speaker who explores issues concerning energy and power at robertbryce.substack.com.