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Local Economic Benefits
Local Economic Benefits
Cherry Valley Solar will provide long-term benefits to the City of Cherry Valley community and surrounding areas, such as long-term local and state tax revenue for schools, government services, and public infrastructure like road improvements.
Cherry Valley Solar is projected to bring the following economic opportunities to Cross County over the anticipated 40-year life of the project:
- $13.7 M in additional property tax revenue
- ~$6.4M in benefits to the State of Arkansas’ Education funding
- ~$3.75M in benefits to the Cross County School District
- ~$1.25M in benefits to Cross County itself
- ~$760k in benefits to Cross County Roads
- ~$380k in benefits to Cross County Library
- ~$1.15M in benefits to the City of Cherry Valley
- In addition to the property tax revenue the project will generate, the City of Cherry Valley will receive a $1M community development grant to support local community projects, paid over 8 years.
- As part of the construction of the solar project, the current Cherry Valley substation off of Hwy. 1 will be replaced with a brand-new substation, which may bring some electric reliability benefits to the City and surrounding residents.
Preserving & Protecting Farmland
Farmers harness the sun’s energy and turn it into products with economic value – often in the form of food for people and livestock. Solar farms are a modern version of this proud tradition, with the added benefit of not requiring water or being at risk from drought or other extreme weather events.
Farmers are dedicated to protecting and improving their land, and solar can help with that, too. Not only do solar projects have very little physical impact on land – primarily limited to the installation of underground cabling and holes to support the racks for the panels – both of these impacts are easily reversed if and when the project is decommissioned, making it easy to return the land to agriculture if desired. Importantly, hosting a solar project gives the land a chance to rest and restore soil quality, and the presence of stable vegetation can help reduce runoff and improve local water quality.
Hosting solar panels on a portion of their land generates a steady, reliable flow of revenue that can help farmers stay in business, preserving their way of life and the character of the community.
Health & the Environment
Clean, renewable energy sources like solar are an important part of transitioning away from more expensive carbon-based fuels. Solar power offers overwhelming benefits for air and water quality, climate change, and human health. Unlike coal or natural gas, solar energy produces no greenhouse gases, releases no heavy metals or particulate matter that can cause respiratory problems, and doesn’t use scarce water resources.
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