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Rutgers University Professor Dunbar Birnie and Assistant Professor Ethan Schoolman have been growing tomatoes, Sicilian eggplant and bell peppers as part of a research project into agrivoltaics, an emerging technology where farmers can grow their crops under clean energy producing solar panels.
But the project is now one of the casualties from the $7.56 billion in U.S. Department of Energy funding cuts to hundreds of renewable energy projects in mostly blue states, including New Jersey and Delaware. No projects were cut in Pennsylvania, a state that voted for President Donald Trump in November.
Delaware and New Jersey, however, stand to lose approximately $43.5 million from the cancellations, according to a list released by Democrats on the House Appropriations Committee.
“We’re now having to beg for internal funding to continue some of the work,” Birnie said. “The funds are short internally and so it’s hard to do what we had hoped to do with the DOE funding.”
Wednesday’s move to cancel 321 financial awards supporting 223 projects in 16 Democratic-led states appeared to show Trump’s administration taking advantage of the government shutdown to punish Democratic states.
“Green New Scam funding to fuel the Left’s climate agenda is being cancelled,” said Russell Vought, director of the Office of Management and Budget, in a post on social platform X.
Democratic New Jersey Congressman Frank Pallone criticised the Trump administration’s decision on social media.
“The Trump Admin continues to steal billions of dollars in promised funds to communities in New Jersey and other states that Trump lost last year,” Pallone posted on X. “Congress should stand united against this ongoing illegal action, but Republicans continue to sit on the sidelines as Trump kills jobs and increases monthly energy bills.”
Rutgers’ agrivoltaics was initially awarded $1.6 million. But DOE nixed $602,180 of that, Schoolman said.
He said one of their partners was Delaware State University, a historically Black university. He said DSU used its part of the grant to do outreach activities and had planned to build its own experimental research site.
“They were really excited about it,” Schoolman said. “And the administration was very excited about it, and it was kind of a big deal for them to have this grant.”
DSU’s funding was cut by $67,000, Schoolman said. A DSU spokesperson confirmed their participation and said they have yet to receive a notice canceling the award from the Trump administration.
