What are Solar farms? A solar farm is a large or small collection of solar panels that absorb energy from the sun, and then convert that energy into electricity. The electricity that is converted is sent out to a power grid for consumption and people. Solar panels are usually on people’s houses, to conserve the sun’s energy, but in a Solar Farm, solar panels are mounted on the ground. There are different types of solar farms. One type of solar farm is a Utility-Scale Solar Farm. A Utility-Scale Solar Farm is when energy is conserved by the solar panels and put into a grid that is used to power an entire neighborhood, small city, etc. Another type of Solar Farm is a Community Solar Farm. A Community Solar Farm is when the energy is conceived and given directly to the community that is around that Farm, typically a small or medium sized town. 

There are many upsides to solar farms, but the cons to solar farms are also extremely significant. To get solar farms you have to clear out a large vast area of land, affecting native vegetation and wildlife. There is a significant loss of habitat, interference with rainfall and drainage. Solar farms impact lands that wild animals use, like horses. Solar farms require clearing and grading, and that results in soil compaction, which increases runoff and erosion. Cultural artifacts can possibly be disturbed by solar farms, and panels in general. Solar farms can promote a way of employment but that could disrupt public services. 

Recently there has been a decline in farms, and the amount that are still in business, but how are they going out of business? Weedsport Junior Felicity Ladue said, “Solar farm owners will go and offer farm owners more money than they make so that they can create a solar farm where that land is. It’s kind of a slap in the face.” Let’s go ahead and discuss the process of what it is like taking over a farm from someone and making it a solar farm. Farms as we know hold a-lot of land. There are big farms and there are small farms, but these farms are declining because of solar farms being constructed. There are people who own these large areas of land, and they let people rent them out, most of these people are solar farm companies, and although it is great for the people who are getting paid by them, it is not great for the land. In another instance there are solar farm owners who are going up to farmers and asking them to sell their land to them, and it usually works because they are giving them a price for the land that is much higher than what farms and farm owners make within years. Making a solar farm on rich soil can create many problems. People spend years taking care of that land just for it to get ruined by solar farm plantations. 

What are the effects of solar farms? Weedsport graduate Meagan Fatcheric said, “Genuinely the biggest reason that people have against Solar Farms is that they’re an eyesore.” This is a very true statement because Solar Farms are not a very aesthetically pleasing sight to see. Over the years our planet’s O-Zone has deteriorated because of the amount of fossil fuels that are being burned, the amounts of Carbon Dioxide being released, and trees can only help the environment to a certain point. One of the most familiar ways that pollution occurs is from greenhouse gases. Greenhouse gases collect inside of the Earth’s Atmosphere. Naturally the products of Greenhouse gases make their way into the atmosphere, but Greenhouse gases release such a large amount of gas into the atmosphere at a small time. Greenhouse gases let the sun shine into the earth but they trap the heat from the sun in the O-Zone layer, making it heat up and deteriorate away. Solar farms and solar panels help resolve this problem because they lower the amount of Greenhouse gases that are let out into the atmosphere. Solar Farms are relatively large because the more solar panels over a large amount of land help reduce the Greenhouse emissions more. The more acres that are covered by solar panels, the more that Greenhouse gases being released are reduced. Solar farms help give a chance for renewable and more sustainable energy. Solar Farms also create many job opportunities, giving a long-term employment opportunity. Solar farm projects give some of the money that they make to local small businesses, and the economy. When a natural disaster happens and you have no energy, no electricity, no heat, no nothing, Solar Farms play a big role in helping all of these come back because it is a natural local power that can support people in a time of need. The presence of solar farms alone create great educational opportunities for young kids and teen who are interested in electrics, construction, technician job, and most importantly agriculture knowledge. Solar panels improve air quality and the health of people in that community. Solar farms have great use of land, from unused land, or damaged land that can’t be restored, and helping those non-restorable lands by increasing the health of the environment around it. 

In conclusion, solar farms are negative and positive. Solar farms and whether they are bad or good depends on personal opinions and the overall effect it has on the environment. Solar farms are great and helping to restore the O-Zone layer and great for power, helping others in a time of need. Solar farms can also be bad for the environment, causing loss of habitats and more natural disasters to occur. The view on Solar farms is confusing because it is not a statistical argument between people. The argument on solar farms is opinionated. Solar farms are good and they are bad, depending on the environment solar farms have many different impacts on the way of life.