Project Overview
The Springfield Solar Project in Lomira, Wisconsin, earned an Envision Platinum award for its sustainability achievements. Owned and operated by Alliant Energy, this project spans approximately 884 acres and generates clean, renewable energy for customers and communities.
The 100-megawatt Springfield Solar Project will generate enough energy to power thousands of homes and serve as a significant source of new tax revenue for the town of Lomira and Dodge County.
The Springfield Solar Project is one of a portfolio of projects in Wisconsin supporting Alliant Energy’s transition to a more diverse energy mix. This portfolio, totaling nearly 1,100 MW of solar generation, represents a key initiative of Alliant Energy’s Clean Energy Blueprint, which serves as a roadmap to accelerate the company’s transition to renewable energy. Alliant Energy chose to use the Envision Sustainable Infrastructure Framework for this portfolio of projects to guide alignment between its project development practices and its organizational sustainability strategy and goals.
Envision was designed to promote more sustainable, resilient, and equitable infrastructure projects. It is comprised of 64 sustainability and resiliency indicators (called credits) which are organized within five categories: Quality of Life, Leadership, Resource Allocation, Natural World, and Climate and Resilience. Together, the categories and credits address materials, energy, conservation, community development, planning, collaboration, human well-being, mobility, and more. Completing the third-party verification process and earning an Envision Platinum Award for the Springfield Solar Project serves to validate and recognize this project team’s commitment and efforts toward sustainable outcomes that support people, planet, and prosperity.
Verified Sustainability Achievements
Leadership in Sustainability – The Springfield Solar Project supports long-term sustainability and clean energy goals for both Alliant Energy and the state of Wisconsin. From the outset, the project team assessed potential environmental, economic and social impacts of the project to inform sustainability objectives, and then developed and implemented a comprehensive sustainability management plan with detailed strategies to fulfill them. Completion of this project supports the company’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions and reliance on fossil fuels, while increasing its capacity for solar-generated energy.
Transition to Renewable Energy – Alliant Energy has an aspirational goal to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions from its utility operations by 2050 through diversifying its mix of energy sources and transitioning to cleaner fuels. The Springfield Solar Project will support this goal by generating approximately 212,000 megawatt-hours in its first year of operation.
Preserve Water Resources – The project team deliberately chose the project site to minimize disturbance of the floodplain and implemented robust measures and controls during construction to protect the region’s surface and groundwater. Several hydrogeological studies were conducted to confirm the project will have no substantial impact to floodplain functions or other nearby surface water, and in fact, an environmental assessment concluded the project’s conversion of former agricultural grassland to native prairie grassland would actually significantly reduce the volume of pollutants like nitrogen, phosphorous, and sediment to nearby waterbodies.
Preserve Ecological Value – The project team conducted multiple studies to identify areas of high ecological value relative to the project site and was able to fully avoid those areas for project development. This included establishing physical buffers and limiting activity seasonally. Furthermore, the project team followed best management practices for the control and suppression of invasive species on the site before replanting with native and non-invasive vegetation.
Improve Air Quality – As Alliant Energy continues to transition to cleaner energy sources, it has demonstrated a commitment to improve air quality by reducing air emissions from its portfolio of assets. Operation of solar energy systems does not produce air pollutants, and the energy generated by the Springfield Solar Project offsets electricity that would have been generated by fossil fuels, resulting in a significant net reduction in air pollution emissions.
Quotes
“Guided by our purpose to serve customers and build stronger communities, the Springfield Solar Project offers the opportunity to generate clean, low-cost energy for our customers for the next 30 years. We worked tirelessly to execute our sustainable development, construction and operational plans to bring local jobs and shared revenue to the Lomira community.”– Dave Herkert, Alliant Energy, Director of Strategic Projects
“The Springfield Solar Project stands as a testament to Alliant Energy and our commitment to sustainability, not only through clean energy generation but also by prioritizing safety and resilience in the construction of this site. Despite significant geotechnical challenges, our team delivered a project that reflects our dedication to safe and sustainable construction practices.”– Jami Stone, Burns & McDonnell, Construction Section Manager
“We are pleased to announce this Envision Platinum award for Alliant Energy’s Springfield Solar Project. Alliant’s use of Envision to guide this project and others in its portfolio demonstrates a strong alignment between corporate sustainability goals and project development. This commitment is proving that sustainably-sourced energy projects can meaningfully benefit people, planet, and prosperity.”
– Kristi Wamstad, ISI, Verification Director
PROJECT DETAILS AT-A-GLANCE
Title: Springfield Solar Project
Location: Lomira, Wisconsin
Envision Rating: Platinum
Envision Award Date: October 9, 2024
Project Owner: Alliant Energy
Lead Envision Firm: Burns & McDonnell
Total Cost of Project: US$124.5 million
Project Delivery Method: Engineer, Procure, Construct (EPC)
Project Status: Complete and operational
Project Website: Alliant Energy – Springfield Solar Project
