Electrification with Equity, Part 2: Scaling Behind-The-Meter Solar+Storage in Massachusetts Environmental Justice Neighborhoods
May 5, 2026
Applied Economics Clinic | Clean Energy Group, Union of Concerned Scientists, Vote Solar
Massachusetts has some of the best solar and energy storage programs in the country, but these programs lack meaningful equity provisions, and clean energy adoption rates in environmental justice communities are low. Solar and storage can provide many benefits that would be especially valuable to environmental justice communities, such as lowering energy costs, reducing local air pollution, and providing resilient backup power during grid outages. This report identifies nine primary barriers to solar and storage adoption in Massachusetts environmental justice neighborhoods and advances 18 recommendations to address these barriers through revisions to the Commonwealth’s existing programs and policies.
This report is the second in a two-part series. Part 1, “Electrification with Equity, Part 1: The Opportunity for Behind-the-Meter Solar and Storage in Massachusetts,” focuses on the opportunity for distributed solar and solar+storage to offset forecasted electric demand growth in Massachusetts.
A Spanish-language translation of the executive summary is available here: Electrificación equitativa II: Resumen ejecutivo