Why Should Delaware Care?
Gov. Matt Meyer has pushed for more solar projects as an environmentally friendly way for the state to generate more energy. But some feel the projects are covering too much farmland and could harm local ecosystems.
The debate over whether solar panels are fit for farmland has reached rural New Castle County.
More than 400 people have signed petitions calling on county officials to stop a proposed 60-acre solar development on a piece of leased farmland in Port Penn, a small, unincorporated village just below the C&D canal.
The project is allowed on the land under the county’s existing zoning rules and will not require a public hearing. New Castle County Councilman Kevin Caneco, who represents the area, hosted a town meeting about the project in July.
About 200 people attended, according to Donna Laws, an area resident who lives next to the land proposed for the project. It was held the night of a tornado warning in the county, and she said no one left when they got the warning.
“They were all up in arms,” Laws said. “Nobody wants it here.”
The backlash to solar projects on farms is not new to Delaware. Kent County lawmakers banned large-scale solar projects in agricultural zones in 2022. Smaller “community solar” projects are an exception.
Some farmers argue that solar projects can make farmland more expensive and also reduce the number of acres available for crops. While the land covered by solar panels could theoretically go back to being farmed after a project lease ends, it can be difficult to restore the health of the soil.
TurningPoint Energy, the company behind the Port Penn project, said in an emailed statement that it will help the state meet its green energy goals.
Gov. Matt Meyer has encouraged similar projects in the past. Earlier this year, he fast-tracked permits for some solar projects. He also signed a bill that guarantees power bill discounts for those who sign up for community solar projects.
Meyer and other solar proponents have said generating more power in-state could help lower the rising energy costs that are leading to high electric bills and increasing ratepayer outcry. The cost to build solar has dropped to about a third of what it was in 2011, and it is also the fastest resource to build.
In 2025, about 8% of Delaware’s total in-state electricity generation came from renewable sources, mostly solar, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
State law calls for that figure to reach 40% by 2035.
Caneco said he will discuss the project, among other topics, at a town hall meeting on Oct. 8 at 6:30 p.m. at the Odessa Fire Hall at 304 Main St. in Odessa.
The opposition
Laws, whose home neighbors the proposed solar field, said she has many concerns about the project, especially its impact on the environment.
The field where the panels would go is not far from Thousand Acre Marsh, a sprawling coastal habitat nestled along the Delaware River and C&D Canal. Since the solar panels would be built on either side of wetlands on the property, the builders will have to make a temporary 20-foot path through sensitive habitats during construction.
Laws worries that power-related infrastructure could increase the risk of fires, among other concerns. The local volunteer fire company has requested the solar company provide additional equipment and training in case of any solar-specific hazards.
Drew Slater, executive director of Energize Delaware, a nonprofit that works with the state to expand renewable and energy-efficient projects, said with the many smaller-scale solar projects he has helped build on farmland, he has never seen the safety concerns Laws raised.
“[Solar panels] are extraordinarily safe,” he said.
Laws said she also feels that if one solar project is built nearby, more will follow, changing the character of her rural neighborhood.
TurningPoint Energy representatives said they have added additional landscaping buffers to address her concerns and “welcome any further specific feedback and remain committed to ongoing dialogue with community members.”
Laws does not oppose solar, she said, but thinks it should be built in more developed areas, like on rooftops or over parking lots.
Caneco, the county councilman who represents the area, said he agrees. While he acknowledged that building solar panels in developed areas can be more expensive, he said it is also important to preserve farmland.
Delaware’s environmental agency added a new grant program last month that provides rebates of up to $100,000 for constructing “solar canopies,” or raised structures with solar panels that are typically built over parking lots.
Some of the opponents are calling for the county to prohibit large-scale solar projects on farms. Caneco said he and at least two other council members are exploring potential changes to local laws involving solar projects.
A mysterious ally?
When asked for details about Laws’ opposition, she had a packet of information ready.
She said it came from a new website, called DelawareSpending.com. While the website, which does not have any information about its owner or operator, appears to be a repository for public documents and meeting videos from across the state, it does host a blog that has posted multiple articles about the project.
Laws said she has worked with the person behind the blog, but that he does not want to be identified.
“He’s my Batman,” she said.
Some of the videos on the blog’s Facebook page, where the platform has previously labeled some of its content as AI-generated, have over 100,000 views. A summation of the solar debate in Port Penn is labeled its “Top Story” on the website.
When asked via email about the project, the person behind Delaware Spending responded, saying, “I’m not part of this story and don’t want to be.”
