First Solar Array on a Landfill in NY State: Town of Clarkstown in Rockland County, NY

Back in 2009, George Hoehmann had a vision for the Town of Clarkstown. Then a Town Board member and subsequently elected as Supervisor, he wondered if a recently closed and capped landfill in the town could support an array of solar panels to meet some of the town’s electricity needs at lower cost. This had never been tried on a landfill before. Despite skepticism from state agencies and other town officials, Hoehmann persevered, and the first solar installation ona capped landfill in New York State was completed in 2014.

Clarkstown is a suburban town northwest of New York City which borders the west side of the Hudson River. With a population of about 87,000, it is the 12th most populous of the 942 towns in NY State. The town has a history of concern for the environment: by 2009 it introduced hybridvehicles and smaller cars to its town fleet, installed LED energy-efficient lighting in some town buildings, and signed the United States Mayors’ Climate Protection Agreement to reduce carbondioxide emissions below 1990 levels.

In his position as Chief Operating Officer of a local not-for-profit organization, George Hoehmann had led efforts that received statewide recognition for getting solar panels on many buildings, including the first solar panels on group residences in the state. He saw that not only did this benefit the environment, it could be an educational tool and save money. After attendinga Planning Board training and doing his own research, he proposed the solar project for the landfill.

The Town Board and Supervisor at that time were initially not supportive, but once net metering came into effect in NYS, which credits renewable energy system owners for the electricity they add to the grid, and once the Board saw that there would be no net out-of-pocket expenses for the town, in addition to the savings to be gained on electricity costs, they were won over. Clarkstown probably would not have built the project themselves at that time if they had to bond it, but they signed a power purchase agreement with a private company that was awarded state grants to build the project. Movement on the project picked up between 2012 and 2014.

Approval was needed from the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and the Rockland County Solid Waste Authority, and these approvals took over a year to obtain. A consent decreewas needed from DEC because this was a capped landfill and construction would require bringing heavy equipment onto the cap. Two DEC staffers were skeptical because solar had never been installed on a landfill and they were afraid leaking methane would cause an explosion.1

Assemblyman Kenneth Zebrowski helped negotiate the approval process. Clarkstown paid for an engineering feasibility study and interconnection fee, totaling almost $90,000, but it was reimbursed by the developer, who paid the town $100,000 as part of the contract. The town helda public meeting at which a few people spoke against the project, mainly concerned about glare

1 The EPA does require monitoring of methane air concentrations, plus panels are constructed to minimize perforations of the landfill cap. See https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2015-03/documents/best_practices_siting_solar_photovoltaic_final.pdf&sa=D&ust=1536871835559000&usg=AFQjCNE1hx5pflLSVjqX6gpp6SylN1f16w

(the technical term is “glint”), but since this was on a landfill away from people’s homes, there was not a lot of opposition. The town also worked with the utility, Orange & Rockland, on the interconnection arrangements.

Building the array went quickly, beginning in the summer of 2014 and becoming fully operationalby the following April. A local firm, All Bright Electric, was the contractor, and a North Carolina company was subcontracted to build the frames. The solar field occupies 13 acres of the 100 acre landfill and has 8,744 solar panels with 2.364 megawatt capacity to produce more than 5 million kilowatt hours of electricity annually. This saves 2,030 metric tons of carbon dioxide eachyear.

Through the NY Sun Initiative, partially subsidized by NYSERDA, the solar farm ended up costing the developer $6 million, with a $2 million subsidy from the grant. Supervisor Hoehmannestimates that due to today’s increased efficiencies, the project would now cost only $4 million. After the installation was built the developer sold ownership of the array to another company, Clarkstown Solar, LLC. The town pays Clarkstown Solar for all the electricity generated from thepanels.

As part of its power purchase agreement, Clarkstown gets below market pricing that has a 1% per year escalator. This arrangement is estimated to save taxpayers more than $4 million over 20 years, since the town gets 30% of its power from this solar array for its municipal operations. After 20 years, the town has the option to renegotiate the agreement or assume ownership and operation—if it does the latter, all electricity will be produced free of charge for the next 15 years. At times when Clarkstown does not use the entire output of the panels, it sells the rest to Orange & Rockland.

Supervisor Hoehmann has learned a lot from this experience, and has been invited to convey that knowledge at workshops by the DEC, the US Environmental Protection Agency and the Association of State and Territorial Solid Waste Management Officials. In addition, the New York Power Authority is working on a white paper about the project as a model to construct solar fields across the state.

Reflecting on lessons learned, Hoehmann says he wishes the town had gotten a better rate on the escalators in the price of electricity each year. With economies of scale, he believes a town could get a better deal now because there is more competition. He now feels Clarkstown shouldhave bonded the project through the New York Power Authority (NYPA) over 20 years, as it would have been paying less than what it is paying in electricity costs through the power purchase agreement. The town did go this route in 2016 under Hoehmann’s guidance when it bonded the purchase of Clarkstown’s street lights off the poles from Orange & Rockland and converted them to LED lights. Not only did the new lights save 70% of the energy used before, but NYPA projected a cost savings of just under $1 million per year, which will pay off the costs within less than five years.

Supervisor Hoemann’s advice to other municipal leaders when considering projects similar to Clarkstown’s solar field? “Go into it with your eyes open. Fully vet the solar developer you are going to work with regarding its experience in the industry. Do your due diligence; there are deals to be had. Many developers sell their projects once they get their subsidies, so look at the track record of the company.” In keeping with his willingness to share Clarkstown’s experience with others, he would be happy to provide more details on the solar field and LED lighting projects if you contact him and his staff at g.hoehmann@clarkstown.org or (845) 639-2050.

As a Climate Smart Community, Clarkstown is considering further energy saving projects such as expanding solar on the landfill, on buildings and as awnings on town parking lots. It is pursuing grants which are available in NYS for zero emission vehicles. Since Supervisor Hoehmann first floated the idea for Clarkstown, the solar farm on the landfill has become a reality, a vision which is now shared by other municipalities to help hold the line on climate change while saving money for taxpayers.

For more information contact Supervisor George Hoehmann at g.hoehmann@clarkstown.org or (845) 639-2050

“At the time, nobody was doing it, but in my opinion it was a no-brainer to positively impact the environment and save money for the town." George Hoehmann, Supervisor of the Town of Clarkstown.

Photos sent by the Town of Clarkstown below, used with permission.

Solar field on municipal landfill, Town of Clarkstown (Town of Clarkstown)

Solar field on municipal landfill, Town of Clarkstown (Town of Clarkstown)

Solar field on municipal landfill, Town of Clarkstown (Town of Clarkstown)

Supervisor George Hoehmann, Town of Clarkstown, in Rockland County, NY (Town of Clarkstown)