Rural Renewable Energy Alliance

06/19/2026

Friday Fun Fact from RREAL! A new map produced by the Solar Energy Industry Association shows solar only uses 0.07% of U.S. Prime Farmland. Suburban sprawl (6 times that amount) and Golf Courses (3 times) are taking more farmland than solar. It's an interactive map, so you can zoom into your location.

Support CleanTechnica's work through a Substack subscription or on Stripe. As farmers choose solar to support operations and boost income, suburban sprawl uses 6x more farmland and golf courses nearly 3x more than solar. WASHINGTON D.C. — The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) today launch...

06/12/2026

Friday Fun Fact from RREAL! The largest wind farm project in the U.S., SunZia, just began commercial operations in New Mexico. 3650MW! This is over 3x the next largest wind farm, Alta Wind (1098MW), in Calfornia. This project powers 1 million homes. It adds $20.5 billion in economic benefit (including $1.3 billion in direct payments to local governements, schools, and landowners). More linked info in the comments.

Energy Information Administration - EIA - Official Energy Statistics from the U.S. Government

06/11/2026

Hey all you artists out there, here's an opportunity to get your art seen for miles around!

  Help Design the New Water Tower! The City of Backus is still seeking your creativity and ide...

06/05/2026

Friday Fun Fact from RREAL! India grew their solar generation capacity faster than the U.S. in 2025. India added 37GW of capacity in 2025, the U.S. 34GW. India started a pivot away from Coal a decade ago and is focused on renewables as their energy source for growing their economy. The cumulative installed solar capacity in the US in 2025 was at 211.6 Gw; it was 135.5 Gw in India.

While China's push to modernize sparked a surge in burning coal, India is turning to increasingly cheap solar to meet its booming energy needs. Though it faces big hurdles, including a rickety grid, India's solar buildout could soon be a model for other emerging economies.

05/29/2026

RREAL May 2026 Newsletter

ENERGY EFFICIENCY FOR THE WHOLE COMMUNITY! We are excited to be launching a new program focused on helping small Minnesota communities save on utility bills. The program has four components: Complete energy assessments for city-owned buildings and infrastructure to identify projects that can bring s...

05/29/2026

Friday Fun Fact from RREAL: Former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty has been named the President and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association. As Governor, he signed the Next Generation Energy Act of 2007, which set new state energy policy goals and required increased reliance on energy efficiency and renewable energy alternatives as well as targeted fossil fuel use reduction. Congrats, Tim!

The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) is leading the transformation to a clean energy economy. Learn more at seia.org

05/22/2026

Friday Fun Fact from RREAL. 90 years ago, on May 20, 1936 the Rural Electrification Act was signed into law. About that time, 90% of urbanites had electricity, but only 10% of farmers and other rural residents. The act followed an Executive Order by Franklin Delano Roosevelt a year earlier creating the Rural Electrification Administration which provided oversight of the process and once the law was passed was allowed to make loans and provide technical assistance. The most important move by the government was to not give this business to companies, but through cooperatives. Thus began the rural electric cooperative movement! Member owned and democratically led based on principles not profit. In less than 20 years, rural access to electricity matched that of urban areas! Fast forward to now: The last 20 years has seen a huge growth in renewable energy. Electric Co-ops + affordable, renewable energy -- what will the next 20 years bring?

Discover how the Rural Electrification Act powered millions of rural homes in the 1930s and continues to influence infrastructure expansion, including broadband access, today.

05/15/2026

Friday Fun Fact from RREAL. Colorado approved plug-in (a.k.a. balcony) solar late last week. We've highlighted advancements in access to plug-in solar several times in the past year. There is a link within this story that explaines meter collars, if you want to understand how this integrates into your home.

Colorado is the latest state to approve plug-in solar (also known as balcony solar) after Gov. Jared Polis signed HB26-1007 into law. The legislation led

05/11/2026

With Clean Energy Economy MN – We just got recognized as one of their top fans! 🎉

05/08/2026

Friday Fun Fact from RREAL. Looking north, Canada's electricity generation is 66% from renewables. 86% of that amount is from hydropower (12% wind, 2% solar). 24% of all energy consumption in the country is from renewables (11.7% in the US).

Canada has continued to take advantage of its vast natural resources and has benefited from the shale revolution alongside rising oil sands production and investment in the energy sector. The medium-term outlook for gas and oil production and exports, how