A proposed solar farm covering roughly 8,600 acres of forest land near Keno is raising concerns from residents as the project moves through the state approval process. (Credit: Elvina Contla)
Don DePuy (right) and his wife, April (left), monitor their horses in Keno, Oregon on March 20, 2026. They are worried the Klamath Falls Energy Center would be built directly along the couple’s fence line. (Credit: Danny Stipanovich)
Power lines run through the forests just pass the town of Keno, Oregon. Residents say that is why a proposed solar farm is has chosen the town’s backyard. (Credit: Danny Stipanovich)
Power lines run through the forests just pass the town of Keno, Oregon. Residents say that is why a proposed solar farm is has chosen the town’s backyard. (Credit: Danny Stipanovich)
KENO, Ore. – A proposed solar farm covering roughly 8,600 acres of forest land near Keno is raising concerns from residents as the project moves through the state approval process.
The Klamath Falls Energy Center would be built on private property bordered by forests in the rural community of under 2,000 people.
A proposed solar farm covering roughly 8,600 acres of forest land near Keno is raising concerns from residents as the project moves through the state approval process. (Credit: Elvina Contla)
Residents say the project would bring major changes to the landscape and could threaten their way of life.
“This land is literally the life stream of this entire area down to the Klamath River,” said Elvina Contla, a Keno resident.
Contla said the forest is deeply connected to water, snowpack and migration routes.
“All of our water that all of our wells attached to comes from the snowpack,” Contla said. “Every herd animal that comes through here relies on those to drink water during their migration period.”
Don DePuy (right) and his wife, April (left), monitor their horses in Keno, Oregon on March 20, 2026. They are worried the Klamath Falls Energy Center would be built directly along the couple’s fence line. (Credit: Danny Stipanovich)
Don DePuy, Contla’s neighbor, said the project would be built directly along his fence line. After a long career in IT, DePuy chose Keno because of the land and lifestyle.
“They’re gonna have to take down a lot of timber, and this ground doesn’t do good without the trees on it,” DePuy said. “I’m just afraid it’ll just turn this all into a big mudslide every winter.”
DePuy said the project would require fencing, tree removal and major landscape changes. He said the impact could extend beyond safety to wildlife that migrates through the area.
“Makes you wonder what’s gonna happen with your property values, your insurance, all that,” DePuy said. “How’s it gonna affect us? We don’t really know, and I don’t think anybody knows till if it does go through and then it may be too late to sell.”
DePuy said the reason developers chose the location is because power lines run through the forest of Keno. He said clear cutting the forest raises fire risk. If a fire catches, it would spread quickly without the timber.
Kellen Tardaewether, a senior siting analyst with the Oregon Department of Energy, said the project is still in its earliest phase of review.
“It is not a done deal,” Tardaewether said. “Nothing has been approved. Right now is when the department and the council and the developer are seeking feedback on potential impacts in the location for this project.”
Residents say the stakes already feel high.
“If I run outta water, I can’t live there. If I can’t pay for insurance for my home, I can’t live there. If a fire does break out and burns everything down, I can’t live there. So they could literally be taking my home away,” Contla said.
This story was reformatted from a broadcast news script.
Danny Stipanovich is a multimedia journalist at NewsWatch 12. You can reach Danny by emailing dstipanovich@kdrv.com.
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