Across America, clean energy plants are being banned faster than they're being built
Across America’s power grid, there’s a growing gap between what we need and what we’ll allow.
As the planet warms and climate disasters grow more costly, the U.S. has set a target to reach 100% clean energy by 2035, a goal that depends on building large-scale solar and wind power.
A nationwide analysis by USA TODAY shows local governments are banning green energy faster than they’re building it.
At least 15% of counties in the U.S. have effectively halted new utility-scale wind, solar, or both, USA TODAY found. These limits come through outright bans, moratoriums, construction impediments and other conditions that make green energy difficult to build.
The impediments come as a gigantic effort to build green energy also is underway. U.S. energy from commercial wind and solar is expected to hit 19% by 2025, and those sources are expected to surpass the amount of electricity made from coal this year.
But green energy must increase radically over the next 11 years to meet U.S. goals. And those projects are becoming harder to build.