Rooftops, Landfills, and Farm Fields – Solar Power Momentum Builds in New York State, August 2020 Albany’s Carbon-Neutral Goals and New Siting Policy Leaves Municipalities and Solar Developers with Opportunities and Challenges John Shields, PE and Daniel Yanosh, PE (August 1, 2020, Rochester NY).
Cuomo Administration’s Regulatory Impetus Has Solar Developers and Engineers Revisiting Complex Site and Financing Challenges August Update: While narrow margins between solar power prices and upstate New York electric prices continue to make solar project “go/no-go” decisions difficult, the solar development community is energized following Albany’s introduction of Article 23 in the 2020 NYS Budget. An alternative-energy, catch-all piece of legislation, the Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth and Community Benefit Act (Act) was created to “accelerate approval and construction” processes and effectively removes the behemoth Public Service Commission (PSC) to replace it with a new and nimble Office of Renewable Siting (ORS, please see sidebar).
What got us here? Creative efforts at municipalities like Clifton Springs, Walworth, and City of Canandaigua set the stage Alternative Energy Complex at Clifton Springs Remains Model of Creativity The addition of a solar array to the Village of Clifton Springs’ Department of Public Works site in 2016 cemented the Village’s claim to having created a premier, regional Alternative Energy Complex. With a yield of approximately 355 KWs from the combined North and South Arrays, the creation of the solar fields added to the Village’s preexisting wastewater treatment plant, wood chip storage capacity, and co-composting facility.
Clifton Springs Alternative Energy Complex
For its part, HUNT Engineers and Architects entered the solar market in 2015/2016 in response to NYSERDA incentives that encouraged municipalities and school districts to develop arrays that were generally 2.5 MWs and smaller. They recorded several high-profile successes, building on their preexisting municipal and K-12 relationships and by quickly finishing site design, navigating municipal approval processes, and then rapidly completing buildouts. “The size of our early projects was based on site constraints, not a specific electric output target”, says HUNT’s John Shields, PE. “The Clifton Springs array with about 350 KW output is a perfect complement to the Village facility. The objective was to save energy costs, create carbon free power, and create a facility that is a working model for sustainable practices. It’s not uncommon for students from area schools to tour the site and see sustainability firsthand”. 10 | The ROCHESTER ENGINEER AUGUST 2020
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