Environmental Impact

Property Class: Agricultural 

This project is located on two separate land parcels with Parcel IDs 93004027 and 93004028 which are collectively about 70 acres. The land is zoned Agricultural. The land connects to the public ROW along South Point Road which is where our access driveway will connect and likely our connection to Company distribution infrastructure.

The images below outline the project parcels in light blue. 

There is an exisiting project on the parcel that is currently under construction 4000’ to the north of this project site. Because of that, we are familiar with the permit process and land conditions. Based on our experience with the project to the north in same area, we anticipate that this will be our permitting matrix.

View the gantt format schedule that identifies the sequencing of permit applications and approval activities below:

Natural Environment

We received a Phase 1 ESA completed by North Shore Consultants on September 15, 2021 for an adjacent parcel. No RECs, HRECs, or CRECs were observed during their thorough desktop review and field inspection. They did notice that adjacent land had potential issues with fuel container disposal and potential for archaeological concerns. However, none of these concerns were on the specific jobsite outlined in the Phase 1 ESA or subsequent archaeological studies.

Since the subject site for this project has been used for agricultural production for many decades, there is no expectation of encountering any form of environmental contamination on the subject site once we conduct these field studies. We also received a Botanical Survey and Vertebrate Fauna Assessment conducted by Geometrician Associates, LLC in September 2021 for a nearby site. This report concluded that there is no immediate impact to wildlife habitat though we will follow these recommendations when moving forward with construction planning:

• To minimize impacts to the endangered Hawai‘ian hoary bat, we recommend that woody vegetation taller than 15 feet not be removed or trimmed during the bat birthing and pup rearing season (June 1 through September 15).
• To minimize impacts to Hawai‘ian hawks, we recommend avoiding earthmoving within 100 meters of tall trees or tree-cutting during the hawk breeding season (March through the end of September). If this time period cannot be avoided, arrange for a hawk nest search to be conducted by a qualified biologist. If hawk nests are present in or near the project site, all land clearing activity should cease until the expiration of the breeding season.
• Outdoor lighting may attract endangered seabirds, which may become disoriented by the lighting, resulting in birds being downed. To avoid potential seabird downing through interaction with outdoor lighting, we recommend using no unshielded equipment lighting after dark between the months of April and October. All permanent lighting should be kept to minimum necessary levels, with shielded lights so as to lower the ambient glare, in conformance with the Hawai‘i County Outdoor Lighting Ordinance (Hawai‘i County Code Chapter 9, Article 14). Furthermore, where possible, exterior lighting should consist of blue-deficient lighting such as filtered LED lights or amber LED lights, with a Correlated Color Temperature (CCT) of 2700 Kelvin. This will not only reduce the risk that threatened or endangered seabirds may be attracted to and then disoriented by lighting, but will also assist in protecting dark skies. 
• Although not expected on the site, if nēnē nests or resting individuals are discovered during site preparation or work, the State of Hawai‘i DLNR should be contacted to determine measures to avoid harm to this endangered bird.
• A final biological concern related to the movement of construction products and particularly fill on and off site is the spread of invasive species, particularly little fire ants and coqui frogs. Both are rampant on the Big Island, although neither were observed in the subject area itself during surveys. It is recommended that the project proponent minimize movement of fill on and off the subject area and inspect all material that enters and leaves for invasive species.
• Our fence will be of a height and quality to keep invasive species such as goats from entering and grazing within our project boundary.

Below is a screenshot of the Hawai‘i LSB Class Locator to indicate what soil types are present in the region. These soil types do not alter our construction plan since they only represent the surface, not the sub-surface conditions.

Land Regulation

Most land use approvals are already in place. In addition to what’s been provided based on the Hawaii Flood Hazard Analysis Tool, this project site is in Zone X, meaning there is only a .2% annual chance of floodplain.

On April 6. 2021 we received a report from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). We interpret this report to approve our Ka Lae 2 project footprint as long as the remaining land is kept in tact per the report linked here. 

Socio-economic Characteristics

The socio-economic characteristics of the immediate neighborhood are predominantly rural, agricultural without a high concentration of high-income families or individuals. This project is part of the CBRE community solar program, in which the economic benefits to the solar project will be for local utility customers that choose to subscribe to the community solar garden. Our planned subscription plan is 50% residential, 40% commercial and 10% low income qualifying individuals. We generally target our marketing and sales outreach to be near the solar project so that the local community feels a sense of pride in the solar project. All subscribers to our community solar projects will be rewarded with a product that nets them economic benefits compared to not subscribing to the project. 

Due to the remote location of the project and its lack of visibility from public ROW and neighboring homes, it is not anticipated to impact socio-economic patterns negatively. We do not believe this will increase or decrease property value; it will have no effect. 

Visual Resources

We conducted an FAA Notice Criteria search and were happy to find that our location is not considered a visual or communication impact to air traffic. 

Solid Waste & Hazardous Materials

No existing hazardous materials on site need to be remediated or disposed of based on the aforementioned Phase 1 ESA findings. During construction we will have a portable dumpster onsite and emptied periodically. This will manage construction debris and other non-hazardous waste from the construction process. All fuel and chemicals needed for the project's construction phase will be stored in double-walled containers safe for fuel storage. The only immediate example would be gasoline needed for certain construction equipment. Once the system is complete and operating there will be no onsite personnel or operations that would create any waste. The beauty of solar PV is its simplicity in operating with minimal environmental impact.

Water Quality

We contracted Imata and Associates, Inc. as civil engineer experts to study the effects of the CBRE Phase 1 solar development on water quality, drainage, and runoff. Their report dated April 5, 2021 concludes that our solar development just to the north of this project site will have minimal impact. We expect the impact and conclusions to be identical for this Phase 2 project. 

This site does not need any water, sewer, or plumbing services. We will have portable toilets and wash stations during the construction phase, but these will be self contained units. During operation there is no water discharge or need for water to operate. Our civil engineer will specify best management practices to ensure no onsite erosion during the construction phase. This will include silt fence, strawbails, straw wattles, vehicle track out pads, straw mats on exposed dirt surfaces, etc. After construction we will reseed the site to ensure adequate absorption of moisture to prevent erosion. Most of the solar site has open land gaps along the project's perimeter and gaps between rows of solar modules. Most of the project site is permeable, meaning all natural precipitation will soak into the ground as always. The solar equipment does not have any toxic or hazardous material and is NEMA rated to withstand extreme weather conditions. We do not believe this site will affect water quality or existing water patterns. 

In addition the landowner filed for a Highly Erodible Land Conservation (HELC) and Wetland Conservation (WC) Certification from the USDA. 

Public Safety Services (Police, Fire, Emergency Medical)

We will apply for an address for locator services with emergency personnel. As part of our building and electrical permit process we will show the local planning department our emergency response plan and compliance with applicable building Code, fire Code, NEC Code, or similar concerns regarding onsite safety.

Recreation

There is currently no recreational activity on this site. Due to our remote location and need to have restricted access for qualified service personnel, there will not be recreational possibilities on this site. No parks, hiking/biking trails, or other recreational activities exist in the adjacent land parcels. 

The development of this project site is quite advanced in identifying and protecting cultural sites on the subject parcel or in the vicinity. Arion Energy commissioned the following studies for the proposed project site:

An archaeological study was prepared by ASM Affiliates, dated Jan 8, 2021. This assessment concluded that the chances of the proposed solar development at the selected site (Sites 1 and 2) encountering resources of significant cultural impact were highly unlikely. The study noted that this area had previously been extensively mechanically disturbed and had been used for citrus fruit production from 1979 to 2001; the trees are still present. Click here to view the Assessment Document.

Click here to view an additional assessment document dated Sep 29, 2021.

Click here to view a report reviewing archaeological and cultural considerations with respect to the development of the Ka Lae 2 Solar Project.

We will work with the local Department of Public Works and the SHPD to confirm the results of the archaeological study and clear the site for grubbing and grading activities. We do not expect any areas of historical or archaeological significance to be identified from this point forward; however, if any such areas are identified, we will ensure that the location of the solar array and associated equipment is sited well away from any such areas. In that case. we will retain access to those unencumbered areas to those who need it.