USDA Rural Development State Director Colleen Landkamer today announced that USDA is awarding 34 grants that will help Minnesota rural small businesses and agricultural producers reduce energy usage and costs in their operations. Funding will go towards energy efficiency improvements and/or renewable energy systems.
“As more and more rural business owners and ag producers incorporate renewable energy and energy efficient measures into their business plans, the more they contribute to the economic sustainability of rural America,” Landkamer said. “This funding will help implement these energy-saving measures. These actions not only help them save on annual energy costs, but also reduce their environmental footprint.”
USDA is providing $1.6 million in grants for 34 projects, throughout the state of Minnesota, financed through the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP). For a summary and map of total REAP funding in Minnesota for fiscal year 2015, visit the Minnesota REAP page at http://www.rd.usda.gov/mn.
Niagara Cave, Inc. has been selected to receive a $29,066 grant to finance installation of a 37.8 kilowatt (kW) solar photovoltaic system in Harmony, Minn. The project is expected to produce 49,500 kWh annually, enough energy to power nearly 5 average-sized homes for a year. The majority of the cave’s electrical costs come from operating lights for guided tours, the gift shop and an underground wedding chapel. The project is expected to save over $5,440 in electrical costs per year and generate another $450 by selling excess power to the local grid.
In Hutchinson, Minn., York Farm is being awarded a $41,250 grant to install a 30 kW wind turbine. It is expected to generate 112,200 kWh of energy annually and reduce annual energy costs by $900 and provide nearly $11,900 of income by selling excess energy to the local electric cooperative.
Explore all awarded projects in MN on a map >>
Congress created the REAP program in the 2002 Farm Bill. Due to the success of the program, Congress reauthorized it in the 2014 Farm Bill with guaranteed funding of at least $50 million annually for the duration of the five-year bill. The 2014 Farm Bill builds on historic economic gains in rural America over the past seven years while achieving meaningful reform and billions of dollars in savings for taxpayers.
Since 2009, REAP has helped finance 788 renewable energy and energy efficiency projects that have reduced energy costs for rural businesses statewide. During this period, USDA has provided almost $20 million in grants and $5 million in loan guarantees to agricultural producers and rural small business owners in rural communities throughout Minnesota.
Users of the program are finding it to be helpful, especially in areas of the state with pockets of persistent poverty and underserved populations. For example, The Blue Line Travel Center, located off Highway 90 in Worthington, Minn., used a $47,000 REAP grant to replace all of its current lights with more energy-efficient LED lighting. The LED fixtures will be replaced within the interior and exterior of the facility as well as the electronic billboard and is projected to save the travel center over 60 percent (more than $33,000) in annual electrical costs.
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack announced that nationwide, USDA is providing $102 million in loan guarantees and $71 million in grants for 1,114 projects financed through the REAP Program, including Minnesota. These projects are expected to generate and/or save 906 million kWh of energy – enough to power more than 83,675 homes for a year and cut carbon pollution by an estimated 455 thousand metric tons. That is the equivalent of taking more than 131,500 cars off the road for a year.
In addition to the grants announced today, USDA is reminding eligible recipients that the department is accepting applications for future REAP funding. For application deadlines and details on how to apply, visit http://www.rd.usda.gov/mn, contact USDA Rural Development State Energy Coordinator for Minnesota Ron Omann at ron.omann@mn.usda.gov or (651) 602-7796, or see page 60349 of the October 6 Federal Register.
Click here to see the original press release from USDA-RD in MN >>
Thinking about renewable energy and energy efficiency? CERTs can help you!
Solar, wind, and biomass are plentiful sources of clean energy in Minnesota, and we’re here to help farmers and rural small businesses get projects done.
Through Renewable Energy for Greater Minnesota, CERTs offers custom project assistance and tools to those interested in pursuing renewable energy projects.
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