USDA funds reap what they sow
August 12, 2015 | By
Barbara Vergetis Lundin
Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) project funding will have nationwide impacts that are already being felt, according to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, referring to $63 million in U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) loans and grants for 264 renewable energy and energy-efficiency projects.
"This funding will have far-reaching economic and environmental impacts nationwide, particularly in rural communities," Vilsack said. "Investing in renewable energy and energy-efficiency projects supports home-grown energy sources, creates jobs, reduces greenhouse gas pollution and helps usher in a more secure energy future for the nation." These REAP projects are expected to generate and/or save 207.8 million kilowatt hours (KWh) of energy through projects utilizing solar photovoltaics, wind turbines, and biodiesel -- enough to power more than 13,600 homes for a year. The results of REAP funding can already be seen at rural businesses across the country. For example, in 2014, Mt. Abram, a ski area in western Maine, installed an 803-panel solar photovoltaic system that was financed with a $235,000 REAP grant -- making it the first solar-powered ski area in the state and the second-largest solar-powered ski area in the country. The solar array will generate 280,000 kWh in energy each year and meet about 70 percent of the resort's power needs. Also in 2014, Progress Solar in North Carolina utilized a $3.4 million REAP loan guarantee the company received to install a solar array. The 46-acre farm currently produces enough solar energy to power 540 average-sized homes each year. Eligible agricultural producers and rural small businesses may use REAP funds to make energy efficiency improvements or install renewable energy systems, including solar, wind, renewable biomass (including anaerobic digesters), small hydroelectric, ocean energy, hydrogen, and geothermal. Since the start of the Obama Administration, USDA has supported more than 9,600 renewable energy and energy efficiency projects nationwide through REAP and provided more than $291 million in grants and $327 million in loan guarantees to agricultural producers and rural small business owners. For more: |