According to Allen Schmid, he lives in, “some of the absolute best irrigated farmland in the world,” stashed in Idaho’s Lower Treasure Valley. “Around here, it’s not humid, and it doesn’t rain very often,” Schmid said. “In this part of Idaho, if you don’t irrigate, you don’t have anything.”

Development from the greater Boise area is quickly and increasingly encroaching on the farming valleys near the mountains. A recent Boise State University study found nearly half of Treasure Valley’s 387,320 acres of farmland will be lost forever by the end of the century, if the current rate of development continues.

Schmid has to stretch every penny and lower every cost possible to maintain the profitability of his farm. To help, he leveraged federal Rural Energy For America Program (REAP) funds to set up solar panels that power irrigation and more on his farm. REAP was expanded significantly through the Inflation Reduction Act, passed in 2022.

The quick payoff on the two REAP projects has led him to pursue additional solar arrays on the farm. “It’s pretty phenomenal,” Schmid said. “The return is pretty quick.” 

Schmid grows irrigated row crops, which primarily feed cows at nearby dairies. His crops include alfalfa hay, corn silage, dry corn, high-moisture corn, wheat, barley, peppermint, spearmint and sugar beets.

Irrigated farming is hard work. It requires dedication, careful observation, and mechanical know-how. “Every field, you basically have to go to three times every day to change or adjust water,” Schmid said. “And every day, you have to go by the pivots and pumps to see if the nozzles are plugged up or the pump packing needs adjusted or if it’s sucking air or whatever.” Schmid gets around the farm with two electric farm vehicles that can draw from on-farm solar arrays.

“Around here, it’s not humid, and it doesn’t rain very often,” Schmid said. “Out here, in this part of Idaho, if you don’t irrigate, you don’t have anything.”

The first REAP project, a 16-kilowatt installation, exclusively powered an irrigation pump and series of pivots, leading to monthly savings of $700 to $800 per month. The second project, a 12-kilowatt solar array, runs a well to water livestock and usually covers the power bill, saving an additional $200 monthly.

Savings on power bills keeps expenses low and can help his farm thrive. “Everything comes in and goes out really fast on the farm,” Schmid said. “It helps pay the cost of growing crops.”

Schmid took to farming after a military career and flying for commercial airlines. “I went into farming because I got a taste of it in my growing-up years,” he said. “I always enjoyed seeing something happen that’s real, that you can touch, that you can see.”

He appreciates the complexity of raising healthy crops and livestock, “the machinery, the irrigation, the coordination with Mother Nature,” he said. There is also the puzzle of “trying to figure out how to create healthy soils, how to make the desert bloom.”

Solar power makes sense to Schmid because of his farming knowledge and experience. “We’re using the power of the sun to grow the crops,” he said. “Why aren’t we using the power of the sun to do even more?”

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), passed by the 117th Congress and signed by President Joe Biden, is a piece of federal legislation that aims to reduce inflation by lowering the cost of prescription medications, investing in domestic energy production and promoting clean energy, among other objectives.