In Grundy County, Illinois, grain farmer John Dollinger gets yearly payments from ten wind turbines spread across his family’s 800-acre property. About a decade ago, the deal guaranteed him $10,000 per turbine each year. By 2025, each turbine paid about $12,000, giving the farm roughly $120,000 in total income each year. More than 90 per cent of land-based wind turbines in the United States are located on private farmland, according to agricultural media outlet Ambrook. Data from the United States Department of Agriculture shows that from 2012 to 2017, 94 per cent of farmland with turbines remained in primary agricultural use.
That amount has slowly increased with inflation. Dollinger’s experience is part of a wider trend across rural America. The extra income can help farmers deal with changing crop prices. But the growth of wind power continues to divide farming communities.
In Isabella County, Michigan, small farm owners worked together to create a community wind agreement that began operating in 2021.
Julia McPherson, community relations manager at EDP Renewables, told Ambrook that renewable energy development has become more politically divided in recent years. I know some people probably don’t like it, but they’ve gotten used to it,” Rosenberger said. “I think because you just don’t hear any rumblings in the neighborhood about them.”
The expansion of wind power faces changing political pressures. Tax credits in the Inflation Reduction Act gave financial support to renewable energy projects. But political opposition to those subsidies could change the financial picture for developers. At the same time, projects in some regions continue to bring tax money into rural government budgets. In places where farms are smaller, some farming communities have tried a shared approach to avoid creating divisions between neighbors. Under the agreement, every participating acre gets the same payment, whether or not a turbine is located on that particular piece of land. The agreement also includes profit-sharing if the turbines produce more energy than expected. For farmers like Rosenberger, early doubts changed after he looked at the financial deal and visited a working turbine to hear its noise for himself. “It’s a good thing all the way around.
He explained that state laws, including Oklahoma’s 2011 statute, require energy companies to name host landowners directly on corporate liability policies.
Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner Glen Mulready said at a Lincoln County community meeting that rural residents often wrongly believe that hosting a turbine or living near one could put their property insurance at risk. “There may be reasons you want to oppose a wind farm here in your county or in your area, but insurance isn’t one of them,” Mulready stated. Building huge turbines can create practical problems for working farms. Building the bases means moving heavy equipment across fields. This can pack down fragile topsoil and damage underground tile drainage systems that are important for managing fields. There are physical dangers as well. Lightning strikes or mechanical failures can sometimes start turbine fires. Burning debris can then fall across crop rows. Even so, developers usually include payment terms in standard lease contracts. These terms compensate landowners for crop damage, soil repairs and disruption to farm operations. Insurance can also cause confusion. Community relationships can become difficult even when landowners want to sign leases. Sarah Mills, an associate professor of practice at the University of Michigan who studies wind energy adoption, found that conflict between neighbors can grow when some host turbines and others do not.