renewable energy

Indiana is expected to add a lot of solar power in the next five years — roughly equal to more than five Hoover Dams. Most of that will be on the ground — something some rural Hoosiers don't like. There could be another option — put solar on hundreds of millions of square feet of unused space on top of big box stores and warehouses.

Indiana nonprofits are unsure if — or how — some climate-friendly grants will move forward. President Trump’s executive order freezing funding from the Inflation Reduction Act and the bipartisan infrastructure law — as well as the lawsuits pushing back — have created a lot of uncertainty.

It allows utility customers that use a lot of energy to have part of their bill go towards setting up a local solar or wind farm.

The federal Inflation Reduction Act could help Indiana utilities and other businesses to adopt renewable energy like solar but whether it will encourage Indiana residents to do the same is unclear.

Roughly two-thirds of Indiana’s counties have zoning regulations specific to wind and solar installations, according to a Purdue University study released Tuesday which surveyed county ordinances around renewable energy projects.

The U.S. will still power most of its homes and cars with fossil fuels by 2050 if there aren’t more policies that encourage renewable energy and electric vehicles. That’s according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s Annual Energy Outlook.

A bill that sets state guidelines for where wind and solar farms can be located passed the House on Monday.

Lawmakers amended a bill to remove incentives for adopting state guidelines on where wind and solar farms can be located. Money from renewable energy projects would have boosted revenues for rural counties and townships.

Lawmakers are making another attempt to set standards for new wind and solar projects in Indiana. But this time, the state isn't making anything mandatory for local governments.

City officials reached a deal last year to buy the factory site and targeted it for solar farm development.