Naomi Hodge Muse, President of the NAACP Henry County – Martinsville Chapter, urges state legislators to take into consideration the impact that widespread adoption of solar energy will have on small and less wealthy communities.
Hodge Mus said on Tuesday, “That is what people do not understand.” “The poorest always pay the price.”
Hodge Muse’s remarks came just a day after the NAACP of Virginia held a news conference online to discuss its legislative goals for this year’s General Assembly.
The Virginia State Conference NAACP’s legislative statement regarding environmental justice states that the organization will continue to advocate for, and provide educational materials and strategies, in accordance with the program directives set forth by the NAACP Center for Environmental Climate Justice, to support policies in the Commonwealth.
Hodge Muse said that of all the topics listed by the NAACP, such as housing, economic development and education, it was environmental justice that resonated with her the most.
Hodge Muse expressed her concern over utility-scale solar developments, saying that they could negatively impact local communities.
Hodge Muse said that solar farms were being built across Virginia and destroying acres of land.
Hodge Muse, who has solar panels installed on her home, believes that there are two ways to implement this technology. She said that future solar projects would be best placed strategically to reduce deforestation.
Hodge Muse said that soil erosion is a concern in communities such as Martinsville and Henry County because they are dependent on underground sources of water.
She said that “people’s wells have already dried up.” If we continue to destroy forests, public water will not be available in every area especially rural areas. There are very few water lines in Henry County and Pittsylvania County.”
Hodge Muse said that the issue of removing trees is not unique to solar farms. She added that data centers like the planned for Pittsylvania County are also a problem.
To the dismay of many residents, the Pittsylvania County Supervisors unanimously approved in July the construction of a new data center. Data centers are large, multi-story buildings where computers store and transmit data.
Hodge Muse said that communities would benefit if officials were more creative in deciding where to install solar panels. She outlined a worst-case scenario where installing panels on forest land that is not developed would be considered the last option. She suggested Virginia lawmakers take inspiration from places such as Germany.
Hodge Muse said, “We have all these roads that are fully exposed to the sun.” In Germany, solar panels cover the Autobahn. These solar farms do not require a single tree to be felled.
