Sen. Deery Talks West Lafayette & State Fair

I am grateful to the concerned residents of West Lafayette who gave me a tour of the neighborhoods and farm acreage that would be affected by a proposed large solar project just west of the city. 

While the question of whether this project should be approved is a local decision, of which a state lawmaker has no role or influence, I believe, as a resident of the community, that local leaders should be very deliberate about planning for smart growth. Semi-rural areas like this, located just outside the metro core, hold great potential to keep West Lafayette’s housing supply abundant and affordable. With yesterday’s announcement of another hospital coming to West Lafayette, we are all reminded how our community is growing and much of that growth will be to the west. We should be very careful to avoid approving anything that would limit our ability to plan for the housing and development that smart growth requires. 

As a lawmaker, I want to empower local leaders to determine what’s best for them without unnecessary limitations from the state. That’s why I oppose bills that remove decision making over issues that should remain local. 

I also recognize as a lawmaker that, in coming years, our nation will need to generate unprecedented levels of electric power. That reality may make some unhappy, but as we shift to an economy driven even more by artificial intelligence and technology, there is nothing anyone can do to change the trajectory of our energy needs.  

In response, it’s common to hear elected officials say we need an “all of the above energy strategy,” and that’s true. Both renewables and traditional sources, like coal and natural gas, will continue to be a part of our grid for the foreseeable future. But not all power sources are created equal, and the mantra of “all of the above” should never become an excuse that keeps us from working toward a better strategy for the future.  

For example, we need to do a better job directing solar developments away from prime farmland and instead toward brownfields and rooftops. In our relatively cloudy region, the sacrificed soil often isn’t worth the power generated.  Last year, I introduced Senate Bill 253, which would have reduced the incentives to remove the state’s best farmland from production. Indiana’s prime soil is a natural resource that deserves protection. 

We also need to invest in energy sources that are reliable, clean and efficient. I agree with researchers at Purdue who believe that our new best option isn’t new at all. The same, compact technology that has powered nuclear submarines for decades can be used on land as a reliable and clean source of power even when the sun isn’t shining or the wind isn’t blowing. 

Rather than developing massive, individually designed nuclear power plants, small modular nuclear reactors, or SMRs, would be mass-produced in a factory, making them more affordable and faster to deploy. SMRs would be placed around the state and depending on their size, each could generate enough power to supply a university, a large manufacturer or a small city. Submarines and aircraft carriers have already proven that the technology works. Now it’s up to policymakers to modernize our regulations and remove the red tape that stands in the way of an energy-abundant future.  

It will take leadership and probably a little bit of pain to get there, but this is a strategy that is going to work, and Indiana is leading the way!