Viewing entries tagged
Water Resources

And...We're off!

Colleagues, friends, and family:

As many of you know, I’ve been providing geospatial analysis and environmental planning consulting services part time through my company, Geospatial Planning Advisors (GPA), over the past few years. Last February I accepted a one year position as a Water Resources Fellow with the Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin even as I continued to work on small consulting projects on the side. It was at times a hectic year but nonetheless a rewarding experience.

I am excited to announce that I am transitioning to GPA full time beginning today and have a number of contracts lined up.  We are also seeking funding to develop a web app to assess watershed restoration projects at a watershed scale. GPA is an environmental and land use planning firm focused on the intersection of policy and technology, utilizing GIS to help solve complex environmental problems. We have experience in watershed management, conservation planning, sustainable economic development, spatial planning, and renewable energy development.

I recently asked my good friend and colleague from Cal Poly, Kyle Perata, to join me in this endeavor. We look forward to working with you to make positive change in the environment and in our communities in 2017 and beyond.

Please check out our website www.geospatialplanning.org or follow us on Facebook. Give us a shout if you have any advice, leads, or just want to talk about maps sometime.

Are solar panels the new cover crop in Virginia?

Are solar panels the new cover crop in Virginia?

A new law introduced in the 2017 General Assembly will allow agriculture net metering for solar arrays and allow farmers to sell excess energy back to utilities at market rates. Existing state legislation does not allow owners of small, detached solar arrays to sell energy back to utilities.

This is great news for advocates of renewable energy but also great news for water resource professionals. If passed, this is another tool in the toolbox planners can use to reduce nutrient pollution from agriculture and improve local water quality. Under this bill, farmers have another option for supplementing income on low-yield fields. Instead of asking farmers to carry the financial burden of removing land from production, small solar arrays can help offset the costs of leaving land fallow beyond the lifetime of agriculture cost-share programs. Moreover, solar development will provide a more consistent revenue stream for landowners. As the weather becomes less predicable in a changing climate, solar power development can be an insurance policy against a less certain future growing season.

Of course small-scale solar arrays will not be the solution for all farmers; however, through geospatial analysis, low-yield fields with high potential for solar power development can be targeted as a component of watershed management plans where nutrient runoff is causing water quality impairments. Removing low-yield, high-nutrient runoff land from agriculture production and installing solar panels is a win-win-win for farmers, watershed managers, and renewable energy advocates.