On an ancient lake bed in central Oregon, where the alkaline soil clumps and crumbles and only sagebrush grows, are the beginnings of Seattle’s future.

It’s terrible land, owner Randy Kruse freely admits, bought in the 1970s by his grandfather, who’d only ever known the fertile ground near Portland. Kruse and his son gave up grazing cattle here because it wasn’t worth the water to even try.

But what is lacking in its soil is made up for in sunlight, which cuts cleanly through the high desert’s dry air.

Seattle’s appetite for electricity is growing, whet by charging stations and data centers, electric buses and new apartments. Residents and businesses consume more than ever, and more extreme weather has pushed the power grid to the limit. The city wants and needs to mine the Kruses’ ligh

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