{"id":25606,"date":"2025-06-30T09:06:24","date_gmt":"2025-06-30T14:06:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\/climatechange\/?p=25606"},"modified":"2025-06-30T09:09:12","modified_gmt":"2025-06-30T14:09:12","slug":"local-laws-and-lawsuits-targeting-renewables-becoming-more-prevalent-in-the-us","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\/climatechange\/2025\/06\/30\/local-laws-and-lawsuits-targeting-renewables-becoming-more-prevalent-in-the-us\/","title":{"rendered":"Local Laws and Lawsuits Targeting Renewables Becoming More Prevalent in the US"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>While federal policy can have a significant impact on renewable energy development, local policy\u2014and local sentiment\u2014can be just as consequential. Between 2018-2023, <a href=\"https:\/\/eta-publications.lbl.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/w3s_developer_survey_report_-011824_version.pdf\">at least 30%<\/a> of utility-scale wind and solar projects were cancelled during the siting process, largely because of community opposition, local ordinances, and zoning. For the last five years, the Sabin Center has been tracking this phenomenon in an annual report, <em><u><a href=\"https:\/\/scholarship.law.columbia.edu\/sabin_climate_change\/251\/\">Opposition to Renewable Energy Facilities in the United States<\/a><\/u><\/em>, which catalogs contested projects, as well as severe state and local restrictions in each state.<\/p>\n<p>Today, the Sabin Center released a <u><a href=\"https:\/\/scholarship.law.columbia.edu\/sabin_climate_change\/251\/\">fifth edition<\/a><\/u> of the report, adding developments through the end of December 31, 2024. The report finds that, by the end of 2024, at least <strong>459<\/strong> counties and municipalities across <strong>44<\/strong> states had adopted severe local restrictions on siting renewables. This tally represents an increase of <strong>16%<\/strong> in the prevalence of local restrictions in just one year. This 2025 edition further identifies <strong>498<\/strong> contested projects in <strong>49<\/strong> states, an increase of <strong>32%<\/strong> over last year\u2019s edition. The report also documents <strong>20<\/strong> significant state-level restrictions in <strong>16<\/strong> states. Notably, while the report includes all of the qualifying restrictions and controversies the authors have identified, it does not purport to be exhaustive.<\/p>\n<p>To supplement the PDF version of the report, the Sabin Center has also launched a new website, <strong>Opposition Report<\/strong> (<a href=\"https:\/\/oppositionreport.org\/\">oppositionreport.org<\/a>). The website offers interactive maps and access to the report\u2019s data files. The data files provide information about project type, status, capacity, acreage, litigation history, and other factors.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Figure 1:<\/em><\/strong><strong> \u00a0Screenshot of Interactive Map from Opposition Report Website<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25609\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\/climatechange\/files\/2025\/06\/June-2025-Country-Map.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"936\" height=\"480\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\/climatechange\/files\/2025\/06\/June-2025-Country-Map.png 936w, https:\/\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\/climatechange\/files\/2025\/06\/June-2025-Country-Map-300x154.png 300w, https:\/\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\/climatechange\/files\/2025\/06\/June-2025-Country-Map-768x394.png 768w, https:\/\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\/climatechange\/files\/2025\/06\/June-2025-Country-Map-570x292.png 570w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 936px) 100vw, 936px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The report describes significant developments at the state level in 2024, including:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>the adoption of a new law in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.flsenate.gov\/laws\/statutes\/2024\/377.708\">Florida<\/a> that bans offshore wind in state waters and bans onshore wind turbines within 1 mile of the coast;<\/li>\n<li>the enactment of legislative reforms in <a href=\"https:\/\/malegislature.gov\/Laws\/SessionLaws\/Acts\/2024\/Chapter239\">Massachusetts<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.revisor.mn.gov\/bills\/text.php?number=HF4700&amp;session=ls93&amp;version=list&amp;session_number=0&amp;session_year=2024&amp;format=pdf\">Minnesota<\/a> to streamline renewable energy siting; and<\/li>\n<li>litigation challenging the implementation of a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.legislature.mi.gov\/Bills\/Bill?ObjectName=2023-HB-5120\">Michigan<\/a> law that gives the Michigan Public Service Commission the authority to preempt certain local restrictions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>At the local level, the report notes that two states, <a href=\"https:\/\/mcrecordonline.com\/stories\/court-says-no-to-wind-turbines,72478\">Arkansas<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/meic.org\/rural-county-adopts-zoning-against-wind-energy\/\">Montana<\/a>, saw severe local restrictions for the first time, as counties in each state moved to block wind turbines. The report further highlights updates in other states, including Ohio, where 26 out of 88 counties have now established restricted areas where utility-scale wind or solar or both are prohibited. A table from the report showing the states with the highest numbers of local restrictions and highest numbers of contested projects is below.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Figure 2:<\/em><\/strong><strong> Top 10 States for Local Restrictions and Contested Projects<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-25612\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\/climatechange\/files\/2025\/06\/June-2025-Table.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"936\" height=\"312\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\/climatechange\/files\/2025\/06\/June-2025-Table.png 936w, https:\/\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\/climatechange\/files\/2025\/06\/June-2025-Table-300x100.png 300w, https:\/\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\/climatechange\/files\/2025\/06\/June-2025-Table-768x256.png 768w, https:\/\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\/climatechange\/files\/2025\/06\/June-2025-Table-570x190.png 570w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 936px) 100vw, 936px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Looking at contested projects, the database shows approximately four times more litigation in state court than federal court. However, an extraordinarily high percentage of the country\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.canarymedia.com\/articles\/offshore-wind\/scare-tactics-and-uncertainty-what-trumps-offshore-wind-order-means\">nine fully permitted<\/a> offshore wind projects was subject to federal litigation in 2024, with active federal lawsuits proceeding against five projects: <a href=\"https:\/\/climatecasechart.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/case-documents\/2024\/20240116_docket-124-cv-00141_complaint.pdf\">South Fork Wind<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/climatecasechart.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/case-documents\/2024\/20240116_docket-124-cv-00141_complaint.pdf\">Revolution Wind<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/climatecasechart.com\/case\/responsible-offshore-development-alliance-v-us-department-of-the-interior\/\">Vineyard Wind<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/climatecasechart.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/case-documents\/2024\/20241025_docket-124-cv-03111_complaint.pdf\">MarWin<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/business\/environment\/right-wing-groups-sue-us-over-offshore-wind-impact-whales-2024-03-18\/\">Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind<\/a>. In December 2024, Cape May County finally dropped a lawsuit against <a href=\"https:\/\/ocnjdaily.com\/news\/2024\/dec\/16\/cape-may-county-ends-litigation-over-failed-wind-energy-project\/\">Ocean Wind 1<\/a>, which had been canceled for financial reasons in 2023.<\/p>\n<p>While opponents of offshore wind projects have not succeeded in persuading federal courts to stop development, they have found support from other branches of government. Already, the Trump Administration has temporarily ended new leasing for offshore wind and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/presidential-actions\/2025\/01\/temporary-withdrawal-of-all-areas-on-the-outer-continental-shelf-from-offshore-wind-leasing-and-review-of-the-federal-governments-leasing-and-permitting-practices-for-wind-projects\/\">halted federal permitting<\/a> of onshore and offshore wind. In addition, the Administration has attempted to block the construction of two fully permitted offshore wind projects: first by revoking a permit necessary for the construction of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.utilitydive.com\/news\/epa-remands-clean-air-act-permit-atlantic-shores-offshore-wind-energy-trump\/742885\/\">Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind<\/a> project off the coast of New Jersey; and second by temporarily imposing a stop-work order on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boem.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/documents\/renewable-energy\/state-activities\/BOEM%20Director%26%23039%3Bs%20Order%20Empire%20Wind.pdf\">Empire Wind 1<\/a> off the coast of New York. These executive actions to block wind energy are being <a href=\"https:\/\/ag.ny.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/court-filings\/state-of-new-york-et-al-v-donald-trump-united-states-department-of-the-interior-complaint-2025.pdf\">challenged in court<\/a> by a group of 18 state attorneys general.<\/p>\n<p>The report was prepared as part of the work of the Sabin Center\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/climate.law.columbia.edu\/content\/renewable-energy-legal-defense-initiative\">Renewable Energy Legal Defense Initiative (RELDI)<\/a>. RELDI conducts independent research on issues related to siting renewable energy infrastructure and facilitates pro bono legal representation to community groups and local residents who support renewable energy projects in their communities that are facing opposition.<\/p>\n<div style=\"margin-top: 5px; margin-bottom: 5px;\" class=\"sharethis-inline-share-buttons\" ><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>While federal policy can have a significant impact on renewable energy development, local policy\u2014and local sentiment\u2014can be just as consequential. Between 2018-2023, at least 30% of utility-scale wind and solar projects were cancelled during the siting process, largely because of community opposition, local ordinances, and zoning. For the last five years, the Sabin Center has [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2340,"featured_media":25609,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5680,5717,5669,1,5682],"tags":[69619,9430,68633,69778,65694,5666],"class_list":{"0":"post-25606","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-clean-energy","8":"category-renewable-energy","9":"category-solar-power","10":"category-uncategorized","11":"category-wind-power","12":"tag-battery-storage","13":"tag-litigation","14":"tag-reldi","15":"tag-solar","16":"tag-transmission","17":"tag-wind","18":"czr-hentry"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Local Laws and Lawsuits Targeting Renewables Becoming More Prevalent in the US - Climate Law Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\/climatechange\/2025\/06\/30\/local-laws-and-lawsuits-targeting-renewables-becoming-more-prevalent-in-the-us\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Local Laws and Lawsuits Targeting Renewables Becoming More Prevalent in the US - Climate Law Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"While federal policy can have a significant impact on renewable energy development, local policy\u2014and local sentiment\u2014can be just as consequential. Between 2018-2023, at least 30% of utility-scale wind and solar projects were cancelled during the siting process, largely because of community opposition, local ordinances, and zoning. For the last five years, the Sabin Center has [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\/climatechange\/2025\/06\/30\/local-laws-and-lawsuits-targeting-renewables-becoming-more-prevalent-in-the-us\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Climate Law Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-06-30T14:06:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-06-30T14:09:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\/climatechange\/files\/2025\/06\/June-2025-Country-Map.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"936\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"480\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Matthew Eisenson\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@sabincenter\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@sabincenter\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Matthew Eisenson\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\\\/climatechange\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/30\\\/local-laws-and-lawsuits-targeting-renewables-becoming-more-prevalent-in-the-us\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\\\/climatechange\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/30\\\/local-laws-and-lawsuits-targeting-renewables-becoming-more-prevalent-in-the-us\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Matthew Eisenson\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\\\/climatechange\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f2826e5705153a3d6bb23927129bf3ce\"},\"headline\":\"Local Laws and Lawsuits Targeting Renewables Becoming More Prevalent in the US\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-30T14:06:24+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-30T14:09:12+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\\\/climatechange\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/30\\\/local-laws-and-lawsuits-targeting-renewables-becoming-more-prevalent-in-the-us\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":685,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\\\/climatechange\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\\\/climatechange\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/30\\\/local-laws-and-lawsuits-targeting-renewables-becoming-more-prevalent-in-the-us\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\\\/climatechange\\\/files\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/June-2025-Country-Map.png\",\"keywords\":[\"battery storage\",\"Litigation\",\"RELDI\",\"solar\",\"Transmission\",\"Wind Power\"],\"articleSection\":{\"0\":\"Clean Energy\",\"1\":\"Renewable Energy\",\"2\":\"Solar Power\",\"4\":\"Wind Power\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\\\/climatechange\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/30\\\/local-laws-and-lawsuits-targeting-renewables-becoming-more-prevalent-in-the-us\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.law.columbia.edu\\\/climatechange\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/30\\\/local-laws-and-lawsuits-targeting-renewables-becoming-more-prevalent-in-the-us\\\/\",\"name\":\"Local Laws and Lawsuits Targeting Renewables Becoming More Prevalent in the US - 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