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In the Trenches: Ohio Emerges as Renewable Energy Graveyard, Battery Backlash Sweeps Coasts, and Michigan Solar Fights Intensify

7 min read
In the Trenches: Ohio Emerges as Renewable Energy Graveyard, Battery Backlash Sweeps Coasts, and Michigan Solar Fights Intensify

Ohio cemented its reputation as the hardest state in the nation to build renewable energy this week, as the state Power Siting Board denied yet another solar project and new research confirmed that the Buckeye State leads the country in wind and solar permit rejections. The findings came during a week that also saw California branded "ground zero" for a growing revolt against battery storage facilities, Michigan communities boo a solar developer out of a public hearing, and the data center industry openly strategize about how to overcome increasingly organized community resistance.

From the rural townships of the Midwest to the coastal communities of New England, the week of April 17–24 delivered a striking cross-section of opposition that now touches nearly every category of energy and digital infrastructure development.

Ohio: Where Renewable Energy Projects "Go to Die"

New research highlighted by Inside Climate News painted a stark picture of Ohio's renewable energy permitting landscape, finding that the state leads the nation in rejecting wind and solar projects. Multiple counties have enacted outright bans on renewable energy development, creating what researchers described as a state where wind and solar projects "go to die." The findings quantified what developers and clean energy advocates have long complained about: a regulatory and political environment in Ohio that has become uniquely hostile to large-scale renewables.

That conclusion was reinforced in real time this week when the Ohio Power Siting Board denied the Crossroads solar project in Morrow County, according to the Morrow County Sentinel. The decision followed a sustained community opposition campaign in which residents posted signs along county roads rallying against the development. The denial adds to a growing list of solar projects that have failed to clear Ohio's permitting process in recent years.

Meanwhile, in Canfield, Ohio, the Toledo Blade explored the difficult position facing farmers who see hosting solar panels as a financial lifeline but find themselves caught between economic necessity and fierce neighborhood resistance. The article underscored a tension playing out across Ohio's agricultural communities: landowners who want to lease acreage for solar revenue face social pressure and regulatory barriers that make participation increasingly difficult.

Michigan Solar Fights Turn Hostile

Across the border in Michigan, opposition to solar development showed no signs of cooling. In Hillsdale County's Fayette Township, a representative for Chicago-based Ranger Power was booed during a public hearing on the company's proposed 140-megawatt Heartwood II solar project, which would span roughly 1,400 acres east of Jonesville, MLive reported. Residents have packed meetings for months since Ranger Power applied late last year for a special use permit. Opponents argue that sufficient farmland in the area has already been dedicated to green energy, and some residents are suspicious of the energy source itself. Ranger Power also has a separate solar project under construction on the west side of Jonesville, near Bunn Road.

The same Heartwood II project was the subject of a separate public hearing that had to be adjourned due to time constraints as residents continued voicing objections, according to the Hillsdale Daily News. The sustained intensity of the opposition over multiple months and hearings suggests the permitting process faces a long road ahead.

Further north in Ingersoll Township, the local planning commission voted to deny DTE Energy's special use permit request for a proposed solar park, ABC 12 reported. DTE, one of Michigan's largest utilities, is now weighing its options following the rejection, which could include appealing the decision or modifying the project proposal.

Battery Storage Backlash Goes National

The week's most sweeping coverage centered on battery energy storage systems, with California identified as the epicenter of what both the Los Angeles Times and Mercury News described as a rapidly growing national backlash. Communities across the state are pushing back against a wave of grid-scale battery storage projects, with neighbors expressing concerns about hard-to-extinguish lithium-ion battery fires — incidents that have occurred at facilities in Arizona, New York, and California itself in recent years. The coverage framed California's situation as a bellwether for what other states may face as battery deployments accelerate nationwide.

The opposition has already spread well beyond California. In Washington state's Snoqualmie Valley, a local group called Snoqualmie Valley for Responsible Energy published an opinion piece on Living Snoqualmie arguing against a proposed battery energy storage system planned for the area. The debate has reached city hall, with Snoqualmie councilmembers Catherine Cotton and Dan Murphy publishing a separate op-ed on Living Snoqualmie addressing community concerns and outlining what they described as "the plan of action our community deserves." The dueling public statements reflect an active civic debate in the small community east of Seattle.

On the East Coast, two coastal battery storage projects planned for Rhode Island and Massachusetts are drawing organized opposition over fire safety and environmental concerns, Providence Business First reported. The Southern New England projects are the latest examples of battery storage resistance migrating from the West Coast to communities across the country.

Wind Energy: A Kansas Project Collapses

In Rice County, Kansas, a NextEra Energy wind project was abandoned after the county enacted a moratorium on wind development, KWCH reported. County officials are questioning the timing of NextEra's abrupt decision to cancel the project and an associated meeting, suggesting the company may have pulled out preemptively rather than face an unfavorable regulatory environment. The moratorium and project abandonment mark another instance of local governments using temporary bans to pause energy development while communities assess their appetite for large-scale infrastructure.

Data Centers and Renewable Energy on Public Land

The data center industry, facing its own intensifying opposition, went on the offensive this week. At the Data Center World conference in Washington, D.C., industry leaders discussed how improved public relations and early community engagement may be critical to overcoming resistance, according to Broadband Breakfast. The explicit acknowledgment that opposition has become a strategic threat to the industry's growth plans signals how seriously developers are taking the backlash.

That backlash was on display in Cumberland County, where officials are moving toward a proposed moratorium on issuing zoning and building permits for data centers in unincorporated areas. A public hearing on the moratorium is scheduled for May, reflecting growing community concern about the pace and scale of data center development.

In a separate but related development, lawmakers in Cattaraugus County, New York, voiced opposition to state legislation that would open state forests to renewable energy projects including wind and solar, according to the Olean Star. County officials expressed concern about siting energy infrastructure on public forest land, adding another dimension to the broader debate over where large-scale energy projects belong.

What to Watch

  • Fayette Township, Michigan: The adjourned public hearing on Ranger Power's 140-megawatt Heartwood II solar project will need to be rescheduled, with continued packed-room opposition expected. Watch for whether the township planning board moves toward a vote or requests additional sessions. (Hillsdale Daily News)
  • Cumberland County data center moratorium: A public hearing scheduled for May on the proposed moratorium on data center permits in unincorporated areas could set a precedent for other communities grappling with rapid data center expansion. (AOL News)
  • DTE Energy's next move in Ingersoll Township: Following the planning commission's denial of its solar park permit, DTE Energy is evaluating options that could include an appeal or project redesign. The utility's response will signal how major Michigan utilities plan to navigate local opposition. (ABC 12)

Trends and Patterns

This week's stories reveal several converging patterns in community opposition to energy infrastructure. The geographic clustering in Ohio and Michigan — where multiple solar projects faced rejection or hostile hearings simultaneously — suggests that opposition in these states has become self-reinforcing, with successful campaigns in one township emboldening resistance in neighboring communities. The battery storage backlash, now visible from California to Washington state to New England, appears to be following a trajectory similar to the solar and wind opposition of recent years, with fire safety emerging as the dominant concern in the same way that property values and farmland loss have driven solar resistance. Perhaps most notably, the data center industry's public discussion of opposition as a strategic challenge requiring a coordinated PR response indicates that community resistance has reached a scale that developers across multiple infrastructure sectors can no longer treat as a project-by-project nuisance.