Articles by John Farrell
John Farrell is the author of Energy Self-Reliant States and a senior researcher at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, where he focuses on renewable energy policy.
All Articles
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8 Vivid Charts – 8 Reasons for a Solar Energy Standard in Minnesota
A conference committee is resolving differences between House and (much weaker) Senate versions of a solar energy standard in Minnesota today. Here’s 8 graphic reasons why the state should go for solar as aggressively as it can. 8 Vivid Charts – 8 Reasons for a Solar Energy Standard in Minnesota from John Farrell
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The Making of a New Midwestern Solar Energy Standard
Last week, a solar energy standard moved one step closer to passage in the Minnesota state legislature, with an innovative new approach to financing solar power. It’s a powerful first step for what would be one of the more robust policies to support distributed, local solar power in the country. The policy has three key […]
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Farmer- and family-owned wind power rises in Iowa
Iowa ranks third in installed wind power capacity in the U.S., it’s 5,500 megawatts behind only Texas and California (and much higher per capita). But like many windy places, the turbines sprouting from the Iowa prairie are often owned by multinational corporations, taking advantage of the local resource and sending the electricity revenue out of […]
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Three Unequal Choices for a Local (Renewable) Energy Future
Earth Day highlights the need for a sustainable energy future, and experience suggests that there are only three meaningful choices for communities trying to increase local control of a greener energy future. But the three policies – deregulation (“customer choice”), municipal aggregation (“city choice”), and municipal utilities (“city ownership”) – are not equal. Two recent […]
