The Biden-Harris Administration has announced that the Inflation Reduction Act will support American farms with investments into Clean Energy and Fertilizer Production. The projected outcome of these investments is a reduction in energy costs, which in turn will bring higher shares of revenue for rural farms and business owners.
"Under the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is committed to ensuring farmers, ranchers and small businesses are directly benefitting from both a clean energy economy and a strong U.S. supply chain," said United States Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack during his visit to the University of Nebraska. "The investments announced today will expand access to renewable energy systems and domestic fertilizer, all while creating good-paying jobs and saving people money that they can then invest back into their businesses and communities."
In addition to utilizing the Inflation Reduction Act, another project will be funded through the Fertilizer Production Program. These investments aim to assist middle-class business owners by increasing overall competition in the agricultural sector. The announced investments will benefit 44 states through a $120 million investment to fund 541 new projects. These projects will primarily focus on increasing clean energy, providing grants and loans to agriculture producers to assist them in expanding their use of wind, solar, and various clean energy forms to improve efficiency. According to a press release by the Department of Agriculture, the USDA has invested more than $1.8 billion since 2020 to expand use of clean energy in Rural America.
In Nebraska, Darr Grain is expected to save $9,700 in electrical costs per year through installing three 15-kilowatt wind turbines at one of their grain storage facilities. The installation of these turbines will generate 138,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per year, replacing 77% of the company's energy costs. Another example includes Boulder Creek Oz in Idaho which plans to install a biomass furnace for heating their cabins and mountain lodging facilities in Boundary County. According to the USDA, these investments in biomass furnaces will replace 94% of their annual energy use and result in cost savings of $3,800 per year.
