State Reps. Karl Bohnak, Greg Markkanen, and Dave Prestin joined state Sen. Ed McBroom on Thursday to urge the governor and leadership within the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to abandon their plans to deforest state land to further their green energy agenda.
The plans were only recently exposed and face intense public scrutiny.
“The DNR is tasked with responsibly managing our state land. There is nothing responsible about clear-cutting hundreds of acres timber to put up solar panels,” said Bohnak, R-Deerton. “It’s unfortunate to see the governor and the DNR continue to operate in an echo chamber of their own creation. Township and state officials who live miles away from these proposed projects are only finding out about them on Facebook. If the DNR had no intention of informing the public downstate, we can only imagine what they might try to sneak past us in the U.P. This lack of transparency by a state department is unacceptable and must be corrected.”
“The willingness to replace Michigan trees with Chinese solar panels highlights the blatant ignorance within the DNR,” said Markkanen, R-Hancock. “The DNR has two simultaneous goals outlined by the Michigan constitution; develop and responsibly manage our natural resources. Mining projects harness valuable resources beneath the ground. Timber harvesting also boosts Michigan manufacturing while stimulating new growth for better wildlife habitats. The DNR clear-cutting for solar panels abandons their constitutional mandate. It locks the public into a terrible deal: trade state land for a future of unreliable and expensive electricity. No thank you.”
Public outrage has exploded since the project plans were uncovered last week. In response, RWE Clean Energy, which operates a solar field adjacent to the public land, reversed course and said it would not pursue expansion onto the state forest. Staff with RWE Clean Energy initially requested the DNR make the land available for the installation of solar farms.
“The governor and DNR leadership continue to prove they will cross any line to push their agenda and make a quick buck at the expense of the taxpayer,” said Prestin, R-Cedar River. “They’re looking for any way to increase their revenues after their massive hunting and fishing license fee expansions were stopped last month. If they thought they could get away with this down state, imagine what they would try to do here in the Upper Peninsula. Whether it be selling carbon credits or clear-cutting forests to build solar, at the end of the day, this isn’t about saving the planet or natural resources. It has only ever been about money.”
“This is not the first state land to be converted from good use to solar,” said McBroom, R-Waucedah Township. “Our governor instructed her departments to find state land for solar panels. Corrections started taking away land from farmers and the DNR took from a company looking to clean up old mining sites- all to go after more expensive energy while we close down generators that aren’t even 10 years old. Now, she had them seriously consider taking some Kirkland Warbler habitat. It’s simply stunning what this administration will do for the green energy industry.”
Comments