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ST. PAUL — The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission is moving forward the permitting process for a proposed 180 megawatt utility-scale solar project in Olmsted County.
The commission met in St. Paul Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026. On the agenda was discussion of the Lemon Hill solar project. The project would cover portions of Viola and Haverhill townships in northeast Olmsted County.
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The project has drawn criticism for taking up farmland in Olmsted County and critics have raised environmental concerns. In moving forward, the commission rejected an administrative law judge’s recommendation that the PUC deny permitting the project. In a main conclusion in the report, Judge Anne C. O’Reilly wrote the plan violates the state’s prime farmland rule by using more than 0.5 acres of farmland per megawatt. The project “would effectively convert 1,956 acres of agricultural property into an industrial solar farm,” O’Reilly wrote in the 108-page report filed Sept. 8, 2026.
On Sept. 15, Lemon Hill filed a motion with the PUC to stay portions of that report. Lemon argued an environmental assessment found the project would remove only 0.28% to 0.31% of Olmsted County farmland from production.
O’Reilly recommended if the project was approved, there should be further environmental review moving forward.
Loss of farmland and environmental concerns were key topics in public meetings discussing the project.
Brett Ostby, senior biologist and co-owner of Daguna Consulting, filed a brief in support of the project to the PUC. He said he was glad the commission is moving the project forward. He said crop farming isn’t necessarily better for the environment and that continuing to move away from fossil fuel electricity generation is an essential step in combating climate change.
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