UPDATE: This letter campaign has ended. Thank you for your support, it made a difference! All parties to the proceeding, including the Attorney General, have expressed the opinion that the Pollinator Adder should stand. We are awaiting DPU's final decision. In the meantime, you can contact your state legislators and ask them to get involved.

Calling works, too! You can locate the contact information for your district representative and your state Senator here:

https://malegislature.gov/search/findmylegislator

Background info on this campaign:

On December 30, 2021, the MA Department of Public Utilities (DPU) decided to disallow cost recovery for the Solar Pollinator Incentive Program ("Pollinator Adder"). In short, this means that solar developers will no longer be incentivized to create certified pollinator-friendly habitat on already-permitted solar fields.

We encourage you to join members of the Massachusetts Pollinator Network in expressing support for the SMART Program Pollinator Adder by sending a letter to the Department of Public Utilities and other parties who can influence this decision.

The Pollinator Adder enables developers to cover costs of the certification, which is administered by UMass Clean Energy Extension [link to certification details]. These costs include customized, site-specific native plant seed mixes and a multi-year habitat establishment and maintenance plan with a comprehensive invasive species management strategy. Certified habitat must meet rigorous standards, including the installation of native plant species that support at-risk pollinator species. The DPU’s decision would threaten continued maintenance of these sites as well as limit the creation of new ones.

In addition to supporting pollinators, such native plantings also store more carbon and offer greater protection against soil erosion and water runoff [link to example] than the typical turf grass or minimally managed fields in many solar installations. By protecting pollinators, increasing below-ground biomass and reducing soil erosion and water runoff, the program also increases the resilience of our ecosystems. The Pollinator Adder thus supports achieving the state’s crucial carbon and climate goals within the electricity sector.

We are asking DPU to reconsider its decision and to allow the Solar Pollinator Incentive program to continue. At the very least, we ask that DPU take no action that would endanger this crucial program without specific public notice and the opportunity for public comment and evidentiary hearings on the costs and benefits of the program.

Thank you for taking a few minutes of your time to send a letter!