Ohio stands at a critical crossroads in its energy future, but backward-thinking politicians continue to sabotage the state’s potential for clean energy dominance, according to an eye-opening discussion on “Today in Ohio,” cleveland.com’s news podcast.

Panelists covered the staggering cost of Ohio’s anti-solar stance – and the numbers should infuriate every resident concerned about economic growth and environmental protection.

The facts are damning:

“In just the last three years, local politicians and fired up residents empowered by a 2021 law called Senate Build 50 have blocked or derailed enough solar projects to generate more than 2,000 megawatts of power,” explained Leila Atassi, as she discussed a story by reporter Jake Zuckerman.

To put that in perspective, this represents enough electricity to power approximately 2 million households – essentially every home in Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Columbus combined.

This isn’t just an environmental tragedy; it’s economic malpractice. These blocked solar projects represented hundreds of millions in private investment, good-paying jobs, and substantial tax revenue for rural counties. Instead, Ohio politicians have chosen to protect fossil fuel interests, effectively killing off both existing projects and discouraging future development.

The podcast discussion turned particularly heated when Chris Quinn highlighted the absurdity of the situation: “You could power Cleveland, Cincinnati and Columbus with passive free, for all intents and purposes, energy that has no pollution factor. And these guys toeing the line for the gas and oil industry try to peddle the fiction that the windmills and the solar are bad, they’re bad for the environment while they pollute.”

What makes this situation even more maddening is that Ohio stands alone in its backward stance. As Leila pointed out, “while Ohio politicians are busy blocking solar, other states, including plenty of Republican-led states, are raking in the benefits of renewable energy. I mean, Texas, Oklahoma, Iowa, these are deep red states and they’re national leaders in wind and solar.”

The economic consequences are already being felt. Ohio’s electricity demand is surging due to energy-hungry data centers and the retirement of coal plants. Yet instead of embracing the obvious solution – clean, renewable energy that could be rapidly deployed – state leaders are doubling down on natural gas, which takes years to build out.

Senate Bill 52, passed in 2021, has been the primary weapon against solar development, allowing local governments to veto wind and solar projects. The results speak for themselves: approximately 40% of Ohio counties have completely banned new solar and wind development.

The pipeline for new solar projects has dried up dramatically, dropping from proposals for more than 4,000 megawatts in 2020 to barely over 1,000 last year.

This isn’t just an issue for environmentalists – it’s a clear example of poor governance and shortsighted economics that affects every Ohioan’s future. As Quinn stated on the podcast, the situation is “as clear as the air would be if we started to do green energy.”

Want to hear the full discussion about Ohio’s solar failure and what it means for the state’s future? Listen to the complete episode of “Today in Ohio” for an unfiltered take on how outdated thinking is costing the state jobs, investment, and a cleaner environment.

Note: Artificial intelligence was used to help generate this story from Today in Ohio, a news podcast discussion by cleveland.com editors. Visitors to cleveland.com have asked for more text stories based on website podcast discussions.