April 22nd, 2021

In honor of Earth Day, Governor Whitmer announced that all state-owned buildings will operate on 100% renewable energy by 2025. As part of the initiative, the Governor also announced that the state will undertake an inventory of solar installation potential at government-owned facilities across the state to deploy more renewable energy resources on state-owned land. Eligible land includes buildings at state parks, state-owned land purchases, and state-owned office buildings. 

The move to transition state government energy usage to 100% renewables not only complements Governor Whitmer’s MI Healthy Climate Plan goal of reducing state building energy needs 40% by 2040, but it represents classic (and very welcome) leadership by example. Identifying suitable land and building opportunities for this type of development requires careful planning to avoid natural areas, siting facilities near where the energy is most needed, and a host of other issues so we are excited to see this initiative take off!