By Kristin Eggen February 3, 2026

The sun shone on Tuesday, January 28 as a small crowd gathered to celebrate Winneshiek County Recycling’s one year anniversary of being a solar powered facility. The 147-panel rooftop solar array was installed on January 24, 2025, by Decorah Electric and generates enough electricity to cover the facility’s electrical use, powering balers, conveyor belts, electric fork lifts, safety monitors and office equipment.
“I think it’s a fantastic opportunity for the county to save money,” says county supervisor Mark Faldet. “In the long view, it’s a good investment. I hope it’s the first of many [solar projects].”
The ribbon cutting, coordinated by Winneshiek Energy District, was attended by five Winneshiek County Recycling staff members, Winneshiek County Landfill Director TJ Schissel, Joel Teslow of Decorah Electric, and Winneshiek County board of supervisors Steve Kelsay, Shirley Vermace, and Mark Faldet. Winneshiek County Recycling Supervisor Jeff Kuboushek did the honors of making the celebratory cut.
“I’m proud of this project,” shares Waste Reduction and Recycling Educator Evan Neubauer, “It not only saves the county money, but it keeps our facility from using fossil fuels, which benefits our environment. It’s a win-win.”
During the first year of operation the system generated 78,290 kWh of energy and saved the facility approximately $10,000 in utility costs. It generates enough to cover the building’s usage throughout the year, saving the facility an average of $824 per month. The project cost was $135,500 and received a 30% federal direct pay incentive of $40,978.71. The remaining cost to the facility was $94,521. According to Neubauer, the investment will pay for itself in 10 years based on the current electricity rate. The average lifecycle of a rooftop solar array is 25-30 years.
Direct pay – also called “elective pay” – allows applicable entities that do not owe federal income taxes to receive a payment equal to the full value of tax credits for building qualifying clean energy projects or making qualifying investments, according to the Department of Energy website. Non taxable entities looking to invest in solar energy are eligible for direct pay through the end of 2027.
“The federal direct pay incentive is a significant cost savings opportunity for non-taxable entities.“ says Winneshiek Energy District Director Kristin Eggen. “We are proud to celebrate another Winneshiek County solar success story that will save significant taxpayer dollars over its lifespan and generate locally-owned, clean energy for years to come.”
“The system has an optimizer, and the optimizer’s job is to mitigate things like partial shading from snow cover.” explains installer Joel Teslow of Decorah Electric. “The other thing is that the racking… there’s no penetration through the roof.”
Community and public organizations who wish to learn more about going solar or request a solar ribbon cutting can contact the Winneshiek Energy District at contact@energydistrict.org or call 563-382-4207 ext. 1.
Love this post?
Sign up for our newsletter.
Don’t miss these
Data Center Moratorium is a WIN for Clean Energy in Winneshiek County
On Monday, September 28, Winneshiek County passed a year-long data center moratorium. The decision came at the recommendation of Winneshiek County Planning and Zoning Commission …
Decorah Community School District Energy Policy: A good news story
Local Partnerships & Expertise Support District Savings & Energy Stewardship A rural Iowa school district might seem to be an unlikely location for interesting work …
Iowa Scientists Agree: Choose renewable energy
Over 200 scientists from across the state (including three from Winneshiek county!) agree that prioritizing renewable electricity generation is good for Iowan’s health, climate, and …



