Debating whether forests should be cut or agricultural land converted for solar and batteries misses the core issue. Siting on forested or agricultural land is cheaper to develop than on brown fields or the built environment; if expenses are less, profits are greater. Bad siting is the norm. Repeatedly, municipalities have been sued or threatened with legal action they cannot afford if they try to bring the voice of reason to bad siting decisions. He wrote his first published essay in support of solar energy in 1979 when the idea of solar was more hopeful and decentralized power generation seemed like the path forward for our future.