Leveraging Strategies to Bolster Community Support for Renewable Energy

Leveraging Strategies to Bolster Community Support for Renewable Energy

By Erik Hagstrom, Haley Weinstein, and Ben Schwartz

Large-scale renewable energy projects often encounter community opposition due to concerns about environmental impacts, public safety, and a lack of understanding about the importance of local renewables in sustaining the grid. While policies, such as California’s AB 205, have facilitated state permitting pathways for renewable energy infrastructure, local pushback may still make siting a project difficult. Developers must actively engage with, and provide benefits to, host communities to ensure projects are seen as beneficial rather than disruptive. For better or worse, the reputation a developer receives in one location can impact the perception of other communities moving forward, creating a snowball effect that shapes public opinion and regulatory outlooks.

Understanding and Addressing Community Concerns

Despite widespread national and state-level support for renewable energy deployment, local opposition remains a significant barrier to project development. This disconnect between broad public support for renewables and local resistance — often referred to as the “national-local gap” — can lead to project delays, increased costs, and even cancellations, highlighting the importance of proactive community engagement and benefit-sharing strategies.

Public opposition to renewable energy projects in California has been well-documented. The Fountain Wind Project in Shasta County faced resistance from residents and local officials over concerns about its impact on scenic landscapes, tribal resources, and wildfire risk. The Humidor Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) project was met with opposition due to concerns about fire hazards and proximity to residential areas. Other projects have been challenged on issues ranging from ecosystem disruption to property value impacts.

To mitigate these concerns, developers should prioritize direct mitigation measures that address specific community objections and clearly communicate the project’s direct benefits to residents and businesses. For instance, fire and public safety risks associated with lithium-ion BESS projects can be reduced by utilizing non-lithium battery technologies and siting projects at a safe distance from sensitive receptors and ecosystems. Wind turbine blade painting can minimize avian collisions. Incorporating agrivoltaics or planting pollinator-friendly vegetation around solar arrays can enhance biodiversity and maintain agricultural production. Dedicated funds, such as was established by Medway Grid’s BESS HCA, to reimburse property owners for lost property value, can directly mitigate concerns over a project’s impact to local property values. Proactive engagement in these areas to demonstrate a developer’s commitment to a responsible deployment can significantly reduce opposition.

Moving Beyond One-Time Community Benefits

A common approach developers seeking to gain local support rely on is offering a one-time financial contribution to fund community projects. While this pathway does provide immediate benefits, it is often insufficient to generate long-term goodwill and community buy-in. 

To establish more enduring and equitable benefits, developers can incorporate long-term financial mechanisms and agreements that directly support host communities. 

Lessons Learned: The Importance of Ongoing Community Benefits

Recent large-scale energy storage projects have demonstrated that ongoing community benefits, not just one-time contributions, are critical for building long-term public support.

• • Humidor BESS (Los Angeles County, CA): 400 MW/1,200MWh BESS project that provides $2 million annually in tax revenue for local services, plus $100,000 annually for targeted community initiatives, while strengthening energy resilience.
  • Vallecito Energy Storage Resilience (Santa Barbara County, CA): 40 MWh Bess project that delivers grid stability and backup power to a community historically vulnerable to outages, supporting schools, homes, and agriculture.

• • South Ripely Solar Project (Chautauqua County, NY) 270 MWac: From year 1 through year 11, annual payments to the Town of Ripley start at $1,750 per MW of nameplate capacity (i.e., $472,500), and increase by 2% per year. From year 12 through year 30, annual payments start at $1,030,000 and increase by 3% per year.

These projects show that structured, long-term benefits help renewable energy projects secure local buy-in. Bill credits offer another tool that can provide predictable, recurring financial relief for communities by offsetting electricity costs for local residents and businesses, ensuring they see direct, lasting value from hosting clean energy infrastructure. This strategy requires coordination with a Community Choice Aggregator (CCA) or utility but ensures that benefits are consistently provided throughout the project’s lifespan.

Implementing Bill Credits for Lasting Community Support

By attaching an annual financial contribution to a bill credit fund based on a project’s nameplate capacity, developers can create a structured, predictable benefit for host communities. These credits, appearing as a dedicated line item on residents’ and businesses’ utility bills, serve as a recurring reminder of the project’s positive contributions. 

This strategy not only provides tangible financial benefits but also aligns with many local governments’ economic development and affordability goals. With California electricity rates rising, (by 90% from 2013-2025 on average for investor-owned utility customers) bill credits can help mitigate the financial burden on ratepayers while fostering goodwill toward renewable energy development. Additionally, regular payments to a fund based on project nameplate capacity at a set dollar amount make it easier for developers to budget and manage long-term commitments, compared to navigating unique community priorities that may be complex and variable. This predictable financial structure simplifies planning and ensures that host communities receive consistent and meaningful benefits.

Conclusion

To gain public support for large-scale renewable energy projects, developers must go beyond regulatory compliance and one-time community benefits. Addressing local concerns with direct mitigation measures and long-term financial benefits, like bill credits, helps communities view these projects as assets, not burdens. These strategies can lead to smoother approvals and  build stronger, lasting partnerships with communities.