A program designed to bring solar energy and jobs to Indiana is now at risk of being permanently rolled back, according to advocates who spoke at a press conference Thursday.
Black Sun Light Sustainability (BSLS) and other community leaders gathered to voice their disappointment over the termination of the federal “Solar for All” program, which they say threatens to halt projects across the state.
Denise Abdul-Rahman, CEO and founder of BSLS, highlighted Indiana’s recent solar job growth, noting the state ranks 23rd nationally with over 4,100 jobs. She emphasized that the program provides critical economic opportunities, particularly for communities with high unemployment rates.
“This moment is about ensuring that clean energy remains a driver of economic growth and opportunity,” Abdul-Rahman said.
The press conference also featured remarks from Rev. Dr. David Greene of Concerned Clergy of Indianapolis and Zach Schalk, Program Director for Solar United Neighbors Indiana.
Organizers pointed to planned projects in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, South Bend, and other cities, including the creation of microgrids and resilience hubs. These initiatives, they said, would have lowered utility bills and increased community resilience.
Imhotep Adisa, Executive Director of the Kheprw Institute, stressed the importance of community-led solar projects to build what he called “energy democracy” and “community wealth.”
13 comments
Solar panels are a joke. They need to be rolled back before they are destroyed by the weather. The most egregious aspect is taking great farmland and forever making it unproductive for food.
You are clearly uneducated about the subject. Please, do some reading an come back with an intelligent, educated comment. I am going to guess you believe the world is flat too.
Good! Roll it back. None of these jobs created would exist without government subsidies and interference, so they should not exist at all.
Shut off the spigot to their Green New Graft and the leaches come squealing out of the woodwork. Sorry folks (not) but we don’t need to throw taxpayer money at your pie in the sky lack of energy plans and the destruction of our farmlands.
This is fantastic! Solar is one of the dirtiest and least efficient sources.
Totally agree!
Solar is smart if deployed properly. Using farmland and shipping energy all the way across the country is foolish for so many reasons. Solar panels should be on city and business rooftops such as grocery stores, malls, parking lots, etc. close to where the energy will be used, and doubling as extra roof coverage. Why are we so insistent on doing things so wrongly?
Sounds great until your roof leaks and you have to remove (and reinstall) all the panels to fix it. Any money saved from the panels would be wiped out in labor costs.
It should also only be done below 40°N latitude.
Above that, the energy produced will never surpass the return on investment and operational costs.
It costs the taxpayers more than it produces.
Good. Nobody wants this failed technology taking up valuable agricultural lands. Now, tear down the existing garbage, and replant with FOOD.
If you insist on solar panels, install them as roofing for parking lots. Duel use parking!
Jobs for locals lol, they bring in people from other states temporarily, then leave. Seen it in Indiana.
Well the only good thing about is that there might be a bunch of industrial panels laying around everywhere so maybe it’s possible to pick up some free ones laying around to use for free . They definitely work tho . A buddy of mine used to get paid money back every month for selling his left over power back to the grid . To me that’s awesome ,not having to spend a penny on a vectren bill. That wás until they changed the laws around so that. The extra money is just credited to your account . That’s still better than paying though . So ………..