Solar energy is the fastest-growing source of new electricity in America. The U.S. Department of Energy indicates that over 10 million acres are needed to scale up solar energy by 2050. In their sights is agricultural land, with the potential to provide 27 terawatts of solar energy capacity — a quarter of the total U.S. solar energy capacity of 115 TW.
But while crops are particularly susceptible to the whims of Mother Nature, thousands of panels on a solar farm southwest of Houston were heavily damaged by a hailstorm this month.
Fighting Jays Solar Farm, located near Needville in Fort Bend County, sits on 4,000 acres of land. The solar project has been producing power for Texas since 2022 and generates 350 megawatts, which helps power about 62,000 homes.
Solar panels are designed to be quite resilient to environmental factors and can still generate energy even when damaged. Studies from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory indicate that solar panels with hail-induced cracks experience less than a four percent reduction in energy production. However, the Department of Energy points out that hailstones the size of baseballs can possess sufficient kinetic energy to shatter the glass on solar panels completely.
Beginning on Friday and continuing into Saturday, 60 mph winds and quarter-size hail pelted the Belville area. The hail ranged in size from quarters to golf balls and even baseballs.
In the aftermath of the storm, residents in the area are now concerned about damage and what environmental impact the damaged panels will have on the area. One neighbor expressed his concern to FOX 26 Houston about how the well water his family and livestock drink would be impacted.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, solar panels contain metals such as lead and cadmium, which are harmful to human health and the environment at high levels. However, while some solar panels are considered hazardous waste, some are not, depending on the leachability of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act toxic materials in the solar panel.
Twitter has been abuzz with concerns about who will bear the cost of the damaged panels and whether the incident is covered by insurance.
BREAKING: Hail storm in Damon texas on 3/24/24 destroys 1,000’s of acres of solar farms.
Who pays to fix this green energy? @StateFarm? @FarmBureau? @Allstate?
Or you the taxpayer? pic.twitter.com/GpNSaopObZ
— Corey Thompson (@Roughneck2real) March 25, 2024
A representative from Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, one of the two companies responsible for the solar farm, verified to Newsweek that the hailstorm had damaged several solar panels at the facility.
“We are currently evaluating the storm’s impact on the project’s energy generation. In the meantime, the plant is operating safely but at a reduced capacity,” they stated.
The spokesperson from CIP stated, “The silicon-based panels do not contain cadmium telluride, and we have determined that there is no risk to the local community or the environment.”
