Alternative land uses can potentially generate long-term revenue streams for a farming or ranching operation. Oftentimes, developers look to agricultural lands for potential sites due to their flat topography and access to existing electrical infrastructure. Particularly during economic downturns, revenue from alternative land uses such as solar leases, wind leases, data centers, or cell towers can help an operation survive. Despite the potential increase in income from these types of uses, there can be downsides for both the landowner entering into the agreement, neighboring landowners in the area, and tenants who rely on that land to sustain their agricultural operations. This section will explore key considerations for agricultural landowners when presented with an alternative land-use contract. Though there are a variety of potential alternative land uses, we will focus specifically on solar development and data centers.

Topics: Ag Finance and Record Keeping