[Conflicts in Renewable Energy] Rapid Decline in Household Numbers as Tenant Farmers Leave... Villages Disappear

Jeonnam Province Solar Power Installation Permit Area
14.89 million㎡ last year, nearly doubled in one year

Rapid spread of solar power causes land price surge
Blocks return to farming and causes tenant farmers to lose farmland
Population extinction crisis, steep decline

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Joo Sang-don] The rapid expansion of renewable energy such as solar power is expected to lead not only to conflicts but also to the disintegration of local communities. Farmers who have lost farmland leave their villages, and the relatively scarce farmland prices have soared, blocking even return-to-farming efforts. Accordingly, concerns are emerging that the expansion of renewable energy will accelerate regional extinction.

According to Jeonnam Province on the 21st, the area permitted for solar power installation in the province last year was 14.89 million㎡, nearly double compared to 2019 (7.51 million㎡). The newly permitted area has rapidly increased from 2.11 million㎡ in 2016, 4.01 million㎡ in 2017, to 6.82 million㎡ in 2018. As a result, the cumulative permitted area increased by 394.8% from 8.96 million㎡ in 2015 to 44.33 million㎡ in 2020. A Jeonnam official explained, "The province only has figures based on equipment capacity, so we estimated the solar power permit area by multiplying 13.2㎡ per 1kW," adding, "Solar power installations on arable land and other areas are rapidly increasing."

The expansion of solar power areas in the flatlands of Jeonnam means a decrease in farmland. This leads to rising costs including farmland prices and rental fees. In fact, land prices in areas where solar power is rapidly spreading are soaring. According to a certified real estate agent in Yeongam County, Jeonnam, reclaimed farmland in the county was priced at 30,000 to 40,000 KRW per 3.3㎡ (1 pyeong) in 2018, but now has risen to 85,000 KRW. Rental fees are also increasing. For example, a tenant farmer renting a 1,500-pyeong (4,958.7㎡) rice paddy for farming pays an annual rent that has risen from 1.5 million KRW in 2018 to 2 million KRW currently. A resident of Sijong-myeon said, "As farmland rental fees rise, tenant farmers' profits decrease, and more landowners are renting their land to solar power operators who pay 9 million KRW annually," adding, "Tenant farmers who face sharply reduced profits or difficulty finding farmland are frequently leaving the area."

According to the Korea Rural Economic Institute, the country's arable land area decreased from 17.15 billion㎡ in 2010 to 15.81 billion㎡ in 2019, an average annual decrease of 0.9%. Meanwhile, the area of farmland converted to solar power during the same period increased from 420,000㎡ to 25.55 million㎡, an average annual increase of 57.8%. This means that arable land is shrinking as it is converted into solar power plants.

This also affects population decline. According to Statistics Korea's population data, as of September this year, Jeonnam's registered population was 1,835,690, a 0.9% (15,859 people) decrease from the end of last year (1,851,549), which is a steeper decline than the national average (-0.3%). Due to the rapid population decrease, Jeonnam, along with Gyeongbuk, was recently designated as a population decline area in 16 locations, the highest among the 17 provinces nationwide.

While population decline is largely due to low birth rates and aging, it is pointed out that the spread of renewable energy such as solar and wind power has also had an impact. Jeong Hak-cheol, executive director of the ‘Jeonnam Coalition Against Rural-Destroying Wind and Solar Power,’ said, "About 70% of farmers who farm rent land and pay rental fees, but it is becoming increasingly difficult to find farmland due to solar power," adding, "The solar power boom has caused farmland prices to soar, making it difficult for young people who want to return to farming to settle in rural areas." He continued, "Although there are no specific statistics yet showing how much solar power expansion has accelerated regional extinction, it is clear that solar power is driving out tenant farmers and becoming an obstacle for young people returning to rural areas."

Lee Bo-ra-mi, a member of the Jeonnam Provincial Council, said, "The claim that solar power is the 'next-generation livelihood of the region' does not fit the perspective of farmers," adding, "While I agree that renewable energy such as solar power should be expanded for carbon neutrality, the method of taking away farmland and the living grounds of local residents is accelerating the extinction speed of regions already experiencing rapid population decline."

Yeomjeon Village in Baeksu-eup, Yeonggwang County, is already facing the risk of extinction. Of the approximately 400,000 pyeong of salt fields, 250,000 pyeong have already been covered by solar power, making it difficult for residents who rent salt fields to produce salt, causing the number of households to decrease from 60 to about 20. Next year, solar power is scheduled to be installed on most of the remaining salt fields, which would leave only 1 to 2 salt field households. With the installation of solar power, land prices that were around 40,000 to 50,000 KRW per 3.3㎡ have risen to 120,000 KRW.

An official from the Korea Rural Economic Institute said, "When solar power operators lease land long-term, they pay higher prices than tenant farmers, making it impossible for tenant farmers currently engaged in farming activities on existing farmland to rent land, causing disruptions to farming activities and related disputes," adding, "In such cases, attention should be paid to the decrease in tenant farmers' income, farmland damage, and obstacles to agricultural production."