The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) has issued a tool that provides guidance and resources for communities seeking to develop solar projects on underutilized properties such as landfills and brownfields.
What is called the Municipal Solar Procurement Toolkit supports recent revisions to the NY-Sun Megawatt Block Program which provides financial incentives for developing solar projects in those areas.
The NY-Sun initiative supports the mandate for 50 percent of the state’s electricity to come from renewable resources by 2030 to combat climate change.
In September of 2017, Saratoga Springs opened a solar park. Almost 8,000 solar panels were installed at the old landfill and is expected to generate about 40 percent of the city’s energy requirements.
The project began in 2012 after the city applied for a grant through the NYSERDA. The project is part of the state’s $1 billion NY SUN Competitive PV program that stretches across the state.
Alicia Barton, NYSERDA president and CEO, said, “Responsible development of solar projects on brownfields and landfills enables municipalities to transform this dead space into a renewable energy resource that helps lower consumer energy bills and provide emission free energy. The Municipal Solar Procurement Toolkit makes it easier to increase statewide solar capacity while stewarding the environment for generations to come – priorities of Gov. Cuomo’s clean energy agenda.”
The New York Solar Guidebook is a comprehensive resource created by NYSERDA to help municipalities and officials engage in informed decision making about the potential benefits, effects, and impact on the community’s character that renewable energy projects may bring, officials said. It contains tools, step-by-step instructions, and information about solar project permitting, inspection, property taxes, land leases and more.
Municipalities can use the toolkit as a guide to develop solar projects on these underutilized lands instead of other productive land.
It includes an overview guide on municipal procurement as well as ready-to-use templates for a land lease agreement and a request for proposal. Additionally, NYSERDA offers free technical assistance to help municipalities implement the policies and practices for becoming solar-ready communities.
This toolkit is part of statewide effort to support renewable energy project growth and compliments a rule making package adopted by state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) in June to streamline the State Environmental Quality Review (SEQR) process to encourage sustainable development.
The updates will take effect on Jan. 1 and will expand the number of actions not subject to further review under SEQR, known as Type II actions, modify thresholds for actions deemed more likely to require the preparation of an environmental impact statement (EIS), and require scoping of an EIS.
Examples of Type II actions to be added include installation of solar arrays on closed landfills, cleaned-up brownfield sites, wastewater treatment facilities, sites zoned for industrial use, or solar canopies on residential and commercial parking facilities and the installation of solar arrays on an existing structure not listed on the national or state register of historic places; among others.
In June, NYSERDA announced improvements to the Megawatt Block incentive program including higher incentives for projects on landfills and brownfields as part of its soft, indirect cost reduction effort. New York has more than 1,300 MW of installed and operating solar capacity, or enough to power approximately 229,000 homes.