Mitigating Impacts of Solar Development on High Value Agricultural Land

The Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry issued final rules on Permitting Solar Energy Developments on High Value-Agricultural Land, with an effective date of April 20, 2025 (the “Rule”). The Rule implements the requirement in “An Act Regarding Compensation Fees and Related Conservation Efforts to Protect Soils and Wildlife and Fisheries Habitat from Solar and Wind Energy Development and High-Impact Electrical Transmission Lines” to establish permitting and compensation requirements for solar energy developments located on high-value agricultural land. The Rule defines high-value agricultural land (HVAL), establishes tiers of value with variable compensation amounts depending on the value and extent of impacts to such land, and defines dual-use agricultural and solar production and establishes credits for and monitoring and reporting requirements for obtaining credits for such dual use.

The Rule applies to solar energy developments that occupy an area of five acres or more, are wholly or partially on HVAL, and start construction after September 1, 2024. HVAL is land that has physical attributes that indicate high suitability for agriculture, including one or more contiguous acres of land that constitutes field-surveyed prime farmland or farmland of statewide importance and blueberry barrens. It excludes forest land, certain contaminated lands, and areas with built infrastructure such as roads and other alterations that make the land unfit for agricultural purposes. Start of construction includes not only traditional activities such as tree clearing, vegetation removal, and grading, but also possession of site control, which in turn includes ownership, leasehold or easement interests, options to acquire a license, leasehold or easement interest, as well as filed applications.

For projects under 20 acres, there is a streamlined permit by rule process. For projects 20 acres and above, an individual permit is required. The permit application requires a demonstration that impacts to HVAL have been avoided or minimized to the extent practicable and, for projects requiring an individual permit, compensation for impacts to HVAL. Even if a project fails to demonstrate that it has avoided and minimized impacts to HVAL to the maximum extent practicable, it may pay an increased fee (110% of the otherwise calculated amount) in lieu of issuance of a permit denial.

The compensation ratios differ from a low of 0.5 to 1.0 per acre of impact to 2.0 to 1.0 per acre of impact, depending on the value of the HVAL (prime farmland, farmland of statewide importance, and blueberry barrens), whether the land meets the definition of “active farmland”, varying discounts for dual use that accommodates continued agricultural use, and assessment of the impact of the project on “farm viability”. A higher compensation ratio of 8.0 to 1.0 per acre of impact applies to projects that are in one of top six counties facing high conversion pressure but only if the land is either prime farmland or farmland of statewide significance, is active farmland, the project is not engaged in certain dual use activities, and the land occupies more than 20% of the farm operation land. There is also an option to pay a higher mitigation ratio and forego the requirement to conduct a field-based survey and other application requirements.

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is responsible for implementing the mitigation program, including calculating and collecting compensation fees.

More information, including referenced guidance material, is available on the Maine DACF Solar Siting Resource Hub.

For more information about the Rule and its implications for solar development in Maine, please contact Juliet Browne.