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Penn State EarthTalks Series: Nov. 4 - Repurposing Underutilized Lands For Energy - Marginal Farmlands, Abandoned Mine Sites, Brownfields

By Penn State News

As part of Penn State’s EarthTalks series, Alexandra Klass, the James G. Degnan Professor of Law at the University of Michigan, will give the talk, “Repurposed Energy,” at 4:00 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 4, in 112 Walker Building on the University Park campus.

The talk will also be available via Zoom.

Klass proposes the concept of “repurposed energy,” which offers a potential solution to overcome barriers in clean energy infrastructure by utilizing underutilized lands, such as marginal farmlands, abandoned coal sites and other underutilized or abandoned urban and rural contaminated properties known as brownfields.

“As the impacts of climate change from drought, fire, flooding and heat waves become increasingly dire, there is growing urgency in accelerating a clean energy transition from fossil fuels to zero-carbon energy infrastructure,” Klass said. “Yet the hurdles to accomplishing such a massive industrial-scale transition are daunting. These obstacles include governance structures, political economy, decision-making dynamics and environmental justice concerns. The impacts of these obstacles are very real and apparent, with large renewable energy generation and transmission projects regularly facing denials or uneconomical delays. A national policy of repurposed energy may help counter local opposition and accelerate clean energy development.”

Klass explained that repurposed energy addresses two core problems in the communities slated to host new clean energy generation projects like wind farms and solar plants.

Developers predominantly pursue clean energy projects in rural and post-industrial communities, where available land is more plentiful but climate change denial and opposition to clean energy projects are often strongest.

Yet many of these communities also have flagging economies, underutilized infrastructure and abandoned lands previously used for energy resource extraction or industrial activities.

Prioritizing such lands for clean energy projects addresses the dual problems of clean energy opposition and economic decline.

Klass teaches and writes primarily in the areas of energy law, environmental law and natural resources law.

From April 2022 to July 2023, she served in the Biden-Harris administration as deputy general counsel for energy efficiency and clean energy demonstrations at the U.S. Department of Energy Klass’s recent scholarly work addresses regulatory and permitting challenges to integrating more renewable energy into the nation’s electric transmission grid, siting and eminent domain issues surrounding interstate electric transmission lines and oil and gas pipelines, and applications of the public trust doctrine to modern environmental law challenges.

Klass earned her bachelor of arts degree from the University of Michigan and her juris doctor from the University of Wisconsin.

The talk is part of the EarthTalks fall 2024 series, “Legal Elements of the Energy Transition,” which is exploring the legal elements of decarbonizing our energy system.

For more information about the fall 2024 series, visit the EarthTalks website.

(Reprinted from Penn State News.)

Resource Link:

-- Lt. Governor, Acting DEP Secretary Highlight Potential Of Solar Power On Abandoned Mine Lands At Beaver County Site; Issued New Report On Solar Potential Of Mined Lands [PaEN]

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