Wide-open spaces provide optimal conditions for solar and wind installations without the space constraints found in urban environments. Additionally, agricultural operations can generate significant biomass resources, creating opportunities for sustainable energy production right. USDA is announcing $145 million in funding for 700 loan and grant awards through the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) to help agricultural producers and rural small business owners make energy efficiency improvements and renewable energy investments to lower energy costs, generate new. This work was authored in part by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, operated by Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC, for the U. Department of Energy (DOE) under Contract No. Funding provided by Energy Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Solar Energy. As energy costs continue to rise, rural communities are discovering unique advantages in their geographical settings – from abundant open spaces for solar arrays to steady winds for turbines and ample biomass resources from agricultural operations. Rural areas possess natural characteristics that. have become the prime contender to host utility-scale solar photovoltaics (PV). However, many rural zoning ordinances are silent on utility-scale PV, introdu y-scale PV because they lack objective data on its potential economic impacts.