Funding the future of agricultural technology. That's what we'll see in This Land of Ours.
The Departments of Agriculture and Energy this week launched a new initiative to help farmers reduce costs and increase incomes by harnessing underutilized renewable technologies. Through the Rural and Farm Income and Savings from Renewable Energy initiative, USDA will help 400 individual farmers develop small-scale wind projects using USDA's Rural Energy for America program. The initial goal is to do so. This goal was only possible thanks to President Biden's Inflation Control Act, which provided his more than $144 million in grants to underutilized technologies through the REAP program.
“These investments will provide long-term economic benefits for their families, businesses and communities for years to come,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.
In addition, the Department of Energy announced $4 million in related funding. Of this amount, $2.5 million will support distributed wind technologies for the agricultural sector, and $1.5 million will go towards outreach and identifying and developing new business models to help farmers save money and earn money by deploying these technologies. This is to support. technology.
Listen to Sabrina Halverson's This Land Of Ours program here.
(USDA-DOE/Washington DC/February 26, 2024) — The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced a new initiative to help farmers reduce costs and increase incomes by leveraging underutilized renewable technologies, including small-scale wind projects. let's start doing ….through Rural and Agricultural Income and Savings from Renewable Energy (RAISE) Initiative, USDA has set an initial goal of helping 400 individual farmers develop small-scale wind energy projects using USDA's Rural Energy for America Program (REAP). This goal was only made possible thanks to President Biden's Inflation Control Act, which provided his more than $144 million in grants to underutilized technologies through the REAP program.
In addition, DOE today announced a total of $400 million in funding, including $2.5 million to support testing, certification, and commercialization of emerging distributed wind technologies, including in the agricultural sector, and $1.5 million to support deployment and identification and development of wind energy technologies. announced a related funding contribution of $1 million. New business models that implement these technologies to help farmers save money and generate income.
“There is a tremendous opportunity to power America's heartland with distributed wind resources, and President Biden's investment policy in America will harness that potential and help all Americans “We will enable them to reap the benefits of a clean transition.” Granholm. “DOE is working with our partners at USDA to raise standards, create jobs, reduce costs, and increase energy independence for farmers and people in rural communities.”
“Today's announcement supports Biden's commitment to rebuilding our economy from the middle down to the top by increasing incomes and opportunities for the small and medium-sized farmers who keep our rural high streets vibrant,” said U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. “This further strengthens the efforts of the Harris Administration.” . “By strengthening our long-standing partnership with DOE through the RAISE initiative, USDA is providing farmers around the world and hardworking Americans with the opportunity to save money and earn income from small-scale distributed renewable energy technologies. These investments will provide long-term economic benefits for their families, businesses and communities for years to come.”
Operating under an existing Memorandum of Understanding, USDA and DOE have a joint working group that will oversee the RAISE initiative's action plan. DOE has confirmed that advances in certified distributed wind technology have opened up significant market opportunities and enabled cost-effective investments for farmers and rural communities.
Initial RAISE Initiative activities focused on small-scale or distributed wind generation are expected to include:
- USDA will provide $100 million in Inflation Reduction Act grants for REAP underutilized technology projects, including but not limited to farmer-owned small wind, small hydro, geothermal, and power plants. We are providing additional technical assistance in support of the $44.75 million application. Biomass-based clean energy, etc. DOE will also prioritize technical assistance to small-scale wind energy projects through a variety of programs.
- DOE's Wind Energy Technology Office is funding $1.5 million for research and extension efforts on new business models for farmer collaboration to generate income from distributed wind power, including a fee-for-service model. This includes through agricultural associations that can manage wind power.
- DOE's Wind Energy Technology Office is soliciting proposals of up to $2.5 million under the Distributed Wind Competitiveness Improvement Project (CIP), which will fund the development, testing, certification, and commercialization of distributed wind technologies. . CIP provides support to U.S. component suppliers and manufacturers of small and medium-sized wind turbines. For the first time, his CIP funding round includes a specific focus on the commercialization of distributed wind turbines for the agricultural sector in support of the RAISE initiative.
- USDA and DOE will host a joint webinar series to educate farmers, rural electric cooperatives, agricultural organizations, and small distributed wind energy producers about our program and how it can be used to develop place-based wind projects. Provides information regarding. The first webinar in the series will launch a new national distributed wind network and resource hub on March 14, 2024.
- USDA and DOE are developing a farmer's guide to distributed wind energy, including a technical, economic, and geospatial analysis of distributed wind energy technologies and applications, as well as how to finance small-scale wind projects.
background:
There are many small-scale, underutilized technologies that farmers and rural communities can benefit from. USDA and DOE are working together through the RAISE initiative to increase education, outreach, research, and technical assistance to help small and medium-sized farmers save money and generate income from underutilized technologies.
Distributed wind involves, for example, a single wind turbine to meet a farm's energy needs and save and stabilize electricity costs. It can also provide a source of income for the host farm by incorporating several wind turbines spread across several farms to support the local power company.
Decentralized clean energy projects can bring cost savings and income to farmers and local small businesses. It also supports energy independence, regional grid reliability and enhances resilience by providing backup power, especially when combined with energy storage. These projects also create jobs and investment in local economies, with approximately one-third of the value of renewable energy projects typically invested in local communities through construction work and maintenance. These projects also give farmers, local power cooperatives, and food companies an opportunity to tackle climate change.
DOE has worked with industry partners and national laboratories to develop a new generation of distributed wind technology that is reliable, high-performance, and cost-effective. The technology is certified to national performance standards and represents a significant improvement over previous generations of distributed wind technology.
DOE works to ensure America's security and prosperity by addressing energy, environmental, and nuclear challenges through innovative science and technology solutions. Learn more about DOE's efforts to advance distributed wind power generation and sign up for the Office of Wind Energy Technology's newsletter.
USDA Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunity, create jobs, and improve the quality of life for millions of Americans living in rural areas. This assistance will support infrastructure improvements. business development. Housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety, and health care; High-speed internet access is available in rural, tribal, and poverty-stricken areas. Visit the Rural Data Gateway to learn how and where these investments are impacting rural America. To subscribe to USDA Rural Development updates, visit our Govdelivery subscriber page.
USDA touches the lives of all Americans in so many positive ways every day. For more information, please visit www.usda.gov.
Sabrina Halverson
National Correspondent / AgNet Media, Inc.
Sabrina Halverson is an award-winning journalist, broadcaster, and speaker specializing in agriculture. She primarily reports on legal issues and hosts The AgNet News Hour and The AgNet Weekly podcast. Sabrina is from California's agricultural Central Valley.
