A large solar panel array near Brodheadsville, Pennsylvania, situated adjacent to planted agricultural fields. REFA can help explain farmer rights when it comes to signing up to produce renewable energy in your fields. Photo by Alex Potemkin: https://www.gettyimages.ca/detail/photo/sunset-beams-reflect-in-solar-farm-panels-in-royalty-free-image/2180890158?
When renewable energy developers come knocking on rural doors, farmers often find themselves staring at 40-page leases, unfamiliar terminology, and long-term commitments that could shape their land for decades.
For many, the opportunity is exciting and enticing—but also intimidating. That’s exactly why the Renewable Energy Farmers of America (REFA) was created.
Launched publicly in July 2025, REFA is a farmer-led trade association designed to help landowners make informed decisions about wind, solar, and energy storage projects proposed for their property. Executive Director Jeff Risley said in an interview with Farms.com that the idea came directly from the people most affected: farmers and ranchers who needed a trusted advocate in a rapidly expanding industry.
“There’s not a trade group that represents the landowners who are leasing their land to these developers,” Risley explained. “There’s no commodity association per se to help them navigate this really complex process. Nobody’s really looking out for them.”
Risley called himself a grown-up farm kid who never left agriculture, with a connection that runs deep.
“I was born and raised in western Kansas on a farm, producing wheat and cattle and milo, and we still have that farm in the family,” he related. Although he didn’t return to the farm full time, his career in marketing, communications, and public relations has kept him close to the industry—especially as he began working with renewable energy developers and landowners.
Those experiences revealed a glaring gap. Farmers were being approached with major infrastructure proposals yet had no independent, agriculture-focused organization to turn to for guidance.
“That was the genesis,” said Risley. “Fast forward to last year (2025), I actually left my position at an agency to start this organization to do that very thing.”
Created in January of 2025, REFA was launched publicly in July and now has members in 18 states. Membership is strictly limited to landowners—those who already host renewable projects and those who are simply curious or newly approached by developers.
Helping Farmers Understand Their Options
Renewable energy development is booming across rural America. Developers—often independent power producers—identify land with strong wind or solar potential and approach landowners with lease offers. These projects can range from five megawatts to 500 megawatts, and the contracts can last 30 to 40 years.
For many farmers, the first surprise is how complicated the process really is. “These are big infrastructure projects that require a lot of contractual language to protect everybody involved,” Risley noted.
The second misconception is timing. “Just because you sign a lease, don’t expect construction to start in 60 days. It’s going to be more like years before construction starts,” he explained. He discussed his own family’s farm case, with a wind project that could take up to six years before breaking ground.
That long timeline is tied to the structure of renewable energy leases. Developers typically secure an initial three-year option to tie up the land, with the possibility of renewing for another three years. During that period, they must secure a buyer for the electricity—often a major commercial customer—and arrange financing for what can be billion-dollar projects.
Renewable Energy Is Just Another Crop
At its core, REFA’s mission is straightforward. “We are here to empower landowners to navigate the renewable energy opportunities they get presented with and ultimately make the best decision for their land and their livelihood,” Risley commented. “We make sure we’re helping protect their property rights in the process.”
He framed renewable energy as simply another crop—one that grows above ground rather than below it. Like oil and gas. “These landowners have the right to grow the crops they want to grow,” he said. “And if that means they want to harvest electrons through above-ground energy, just like they harvest molecules from below-ground energy, they should absolutely have that right.”
Risley described how REFA provides services in four key areas:
- Peer-to-Peer Networking: Farmers trust other farmers. REFA connects landowners who have already hosted projects with those just beginning the process. A private online community functions like a dedicated social platform where members can ask questions and share experiences.
- Education: REFA hosts webinars, publishes research, and maintains an AI (artificial intelligence)-powered knowledge base filled with vetted information at the intersection of agriculture and renewable energy. “We can help those landowners cut through misinformation and make a good decision,” Risley mentioned.
- Advocacy: The organization monitors local, state, and federal policy, stepping in when ordinances or legislation threaten landowners’ ability to consider renewable energy. One Pennsylvania member faced a township attempting to amend its solar ordinance in a way that would have made development impossible. “We worked with that member… and ultimately had those amendments overturned so that development could still proceed,” Risley recalled.
- Professional Services: This includes non-legal lease reviews—one of REFA’s most popular offerings. “These leases can be up to 40 years long, so it’s important to ensure they are really sound,” he said.
REFA also provides landscape analysis using GIS tools to assess whether a property is suitable for development.
“With technology now, you don’t have to travel to the farm,” Risley noted. “We generate a report and then walk through that report with the member.”
Avoiding Common Missteps
Risley reminded that early mistakes can cost landowners dearly.
Many fail to understand the long-term operational impacts of hosting turbines or solar arrays. Others underestimate the importance of negotiating terms related to soil compaction, drainage, construction access, or decommissioning.
“Two-thirds of these contracts are more about the impacts to your operation and to your ground,” he explained. “A lot of times, attorneys don’t understand it if they don’t have experience looking at these.”
REFA, he explained, connects members with attorneys who specialize in renewable energy leases, ensuring they receive proper legal review.
Renewable energy income can reshape a farm’s financial future. “This could be life-changing money,” Risley pointed out. “It’s an extra income stream that can be counted on for up to 30 years, and it can pay more per acre in a lot of cases than the crop you’re growing.”
But that stability also introduces new complexity. What happens if land is subdivided among heirs? How should long-term lease income be incorporated into estate planning?
“You really want to make sure that you’ve thought through that,” he said, and noted that REFA hosts webinars dedicated to succession planning in the context of renewable energy.
Staying Alert to Policy Shifts
Risley urged farmers to monitor renewable energy policy just as closely as they follow farm programs. Local ordinances, state legislation, or federal actions can all influence whether a project moves forward—or whether a landowner retains the right to participate at all.
“We’re trying to defend your property rights,” he mentioned. “Pay attention to what’s going on with renewable energy, just like you do with soil issues and everything else.”
The association distributes newsletters twice a month, along with blog posts and myth-busting briefs on topics ranging from wildlife impacts to soil health under solar arrays.
Looking ahead, Risley said that REFA plans to expand its membership nationwide and broaden its professional services. That includes tax and accounting guidance, operational advice for farming around turbines, and support for managing soil and land use under solar installations.
“We’re trying to bring on some additional professional services,” he exclaimed. “All of these other kinds of services that would be related to this particular crop that are unique to that crop.”
Above all, he wants farmers to know REFA is on their side. “We are ag-based. We are not here to support the developers,” he summed up.
Developer sponsorships help keep membership dues low—ranging from $50 to $250 per year—but the organization remains farmer-led and farmer-focused.
“I’m in this to make sure the succession of family farms in the United States continues,” Risley stated. “They deserve opportunities to innovate and create other revenue streams.”