When I thought about it, I felt guilty. Turning on the lights produced an image of another shovelful of coal. I couldn’t shake the belief that I was part of the problem, not the solution.

Our power was generated by a coal fired plant which has now been converted to natural gas. The coal is still being mined and is now being exported for someone else to burn.

Going solar was the way to go. In 2020 we hired a company (Empower Energy) to construct a solar array that would power both the Homestead Farm and First Nature Farms: 23.7 kW total.

Measuring 16 feet tall by 100 feet long the panels are tied to the grid meaning that any power in excess of our needs is sold to the grid. In times when we use electricity in excess of our production or when the sun is not shining, we buy it from the grid just like everyone else.