Pivot Solar NY 2 Project

• Located off Sweet Road north of Pratts Falls Road
• System size: 4.25 MWac
• Fenced area of 22.93 acres 
• Point of interconnection at existing distribution feeder on Sweet Road

Potential PV panel viewshed visibility is based on the screening effects of topography, vegetation, and man-made structures as represented in the 2016 FEMA Oneida Subbasin lidar dataset. Sample points representing PV panels were placed 100 feet apart in a grid pattern throughout all proposed PV panel areas with an assumed maximum height of 10 feet as a basis for this analysis.

Pivot Energy is developing a 4.25 Megawatt (MW) solar project located on Sweet Road in the Town of Pompey. The solar field will be constructed on approximately 22 acres within the land parcel and consist of approximately 10,000 PV panels mounted on a single-axis tracking system. The solar facility will provide affordable, clean energy to organizations, businesses, farms, and municipal buildings. In contrast to fossil fuel powered plants which pollute the air and whose spills pose a threat to aquifers, rivers, and streams, solar is a safe alternative. This project will help the State of New York meet its renewable energy goals established in the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act in order to increase resiliency, stabilize energy costs, and preserve the land for future generations.

Property tax revenue to Onondaga County

Over $680,000 in tax revenue for the Town, School District and County over a 25 year span is estimated. Additionally, Pivot Energy has proposed an additional $80,000 via a Host Community Agreement directly to the Town of Pompey. 

Local job creation

As with any major construction project, solar farms involve a variety of trades and service providers, many of which will be sourced from the local community. This project is expected to generate 40-50 local full time jobs during the construction phase of the project. This includes fencing contractors, union civil contractors, union electrical contractors, and locally sourced temp labor. Construction jobs created from the project will boost consumer spending in and around the Town. Increased household income is spent and invested back into the local communities, thereby generating sales and income tax revenues. Once operational, the facility will provide operations and maintenance jobs including vegetation management and routine maintenance for the duration of the 25 year project life. 

Scholarship donations

Pivot Energy believes in investing in the communities where we operate. As part of this project, we will donate $25,000 in the first year of project operation for the establishment of a scholarship to be awarded to Pompey students in the Fabius-Pompey school district. As critical stakeholders in this project, we would like to solicit input from the local community on which non-profits we should support. Please let us know if you have any ideas; please submit your recommendations to this email address. We greatly appreciate your input! 

Pivot intends to provide project subscribers with clean, renewable energy to displace the use of fossil fuels, which, during the extraction process, can permanently damage the environment. Working in collaboration with the town and local stakeholders, Pivot Energy will utilize best practices including height limitations of the solar arrays and property setbacks. The Project uses agricultural-style fencing and natural landscape buffering, to better blend into the community while producing sustainable energy for decades to come. Perimeter plantings using a mix of deciduous and evergreen flora both soften the visual appearance of the Project and minimize the potential visual effect of the Project by integrating the project into the surrounding landscape. As per the Tier 3 Solar requirements, Pivot Energy will conduct a visual assessment to model impacts on public roadways and adjacent properties and will submit a screening and landscape plan to the Town for review and approval.

Pivot has already received community input on the visual impact of the solar facility and has made additional modifications to minimize the visual impact of the project. We have shifted the solar arrays further back from neighboring properties, and will install an additional row of vegetative screening, primarily trees, between the project site and adjacent landowners to provide more coverage of the facility and allow for a natural viewpoint of the landscape. Pivot has prepared visual simulations based on site-specific topography and actual design specifications for this project to demonstrate how minimally impactful this project will be to the viewshed. 

In a letter to the Pompey Town Board from Chris Carrick, Energy Program Manager at the Central New York Regional Planning & Development Board, he referenced the findings of a new study from the University of Rhode Island which found no associated impact on property values for solar farms located in rural areas such as the Town of Pompey. In this American Clean Power Association Fact Sheet, research has shown that solar farms do not have a negative impact on property values in rural areas, including in New York.

We have always had a major interest in helping farmers keep their land. Solar projects diversify revenue sources for landowners where the facility is located, and with agrivoltaic options (co-locating agriculture and solar), the project site can create consistent new revenue for the landowner while supporting agricultural activities. It is our intention to improve the environment and leave the soil in an even better condition than its current status through responsible environmental management techniques and adherence to site management practices specified by New York State Department of Agriculture & Markets. 

At a minimum, we will plant native plants/pollinator habitat as ground cover, and we default to agricultural friendly vegetation management practices, such as grazing. This means that the land will retain some agricultural involvement during solar operations and has the additional benefit of soil quality improvement over time. Removal of existing trees and vegetation will be minimized or offset with plantings elsewhere on the property.

Farm soils will be kept intact beneath the PV panels. The panels will be installed on a low-profile racking system with no concrete footers. Once removed and properly decommissioned, the project leaves no trace so land can be used for rotational crops, grazing, or other agricultural activities.. 

Solar farm components are primarily inert (steel, aluminum, glass) and will not require extensive clean-up for any agricultural use if solar operations cease after 25 years. All components will be recycled, repurposed, or removed from the property at the end of the project term. Extensive grading or earth movement within the fence line is not expected; racking should for the most part be able to follow the natural contours of the land. Appropriate environmental and archaeological studies have been conducted and no significant impacts are expected. At decommissioning, the companies will restore the site to its original condition, with likely soil improvement based on the measures described above. See more information about recycling components in the decommissioning section below.

We have incorporated community feedback about the potential impacts on agricultural land, and we are proposing an agricultural easement on adjacent land to ensure equivalent farmland will be available for use throughout the project’s life. We will set aside mitigation acreage equal in area and quality (approximately 22 acres) for agricultural use to ensure quality land is available to local farmers.

Electromagnetic Field (EMF)

Like everyday household electronics, solar PV arrays also emit an electromagnetic field (EMF). According to the World Health Organization, solar photovoltaic (PV) systems emit a very weak electromagnetic field, about the same level as a household microwave, and found no evidence of danger to human health. People who are located outside the fenced perimeter (everyone) of the solar facility are not exposed to significant EMF from the facility at all. 

Additionally, although solar panels contain some heavy metals similar to those in your cell phone, those components are under thick, tempered glass. No one outside the project's perimeter would ever come in contact with any of the secured materials. We monitor all of our systems 24/7. If there is damage to the array, we will repair the system quickly. Pivot performs preventative maintenance and repairs to ensure the system is safe and operational. For more information about solar safety, visit our Solar Safety Blog Series 101-103. 

Toxicity 

Solar arrays do not produce any pollution or other outward hazards. The primary components of a solar panel are a semiconductor (typically made of silicon), metal, plastic, or glass, and wiring apparatuses. They don’t contain liquids that can leak, nor do they impact the level of sunlight experienced by those living near them. We have a detailed decommissioning plan that will ensure that they are properly recycled at the end of the panels' life cycle. See the section below for more information about how Pivot safely removes and recycles solar panels. 

The Health and Safety Impacts of Solar Photovoltaics White Paper conducted by the North Carolina State University’s Clean Energy and Technology Center addresses everyday public health and safety concerns for utility-scale solar PV projects. They covered the areas of toxicity and EMF and found negligible public health impact. 

Pivot evaluates parcels for various environmental attributes when developing community solar projects. Sites that offer the opportunity to avoid, minimize, or mitigate environmental impacts are pursued for further development efforts. Evaluation efforts include screening for archaeological, cultural, and historical resources; wetlands studies; investigating presence of endangered or threatened species; and identifying nearby receptors for visual impacts.

For this project, all applicable agencies will review the required impact studies to verify that the proposed facility will not threaten endangered species or their habitats. Additionally, measures are in place to minimize any impact on the local wildlife. We will use thin, wire mesh game fences with no barbed wire, which allows small critters to pass through and keeps larger animals out in the safest way possible.

The useful life of the solar facility is expected to be at least 25 years. At the end of the term, the project will be decommissioned per a comprehensive plan reviewed by Onondaga County during the permitting process. At the end of the project’s useful life, Pivot will suspend operations and decommission the plant, which will include any necessary removal of above and below ground equipment, and site reclamation efforts. Pivot’s obligation under the Solar Lease Agreement is to return the site to the landowner in substantially the same condition that the property was in prior to the improvements being made.

The individual project components to be decommissioned will either be 1) recycled or reused to the maximum extent practicable, or 2) removed from the site and disposed of at an appropriately licensed disposal facility. The general decommissioning approach will be the same whether a portion of, or the entire Project is decommissioned.

Pivot is committed to caring for the land during operations of the solar farm, and when the site is decommissioned we have committed to the following decommissioning plan.

• During decommissioning, project components that are no longer needed will be removed from the site and recycled, reused or disposed of at an appropriately licensed disposal facility. The first operation is to disconnect and remove modules from the tracker assemblies.
• Next, the tracker and mounting structures, DC wiring materials, and combiner boxes will all be assembled and segregated for disposal or salvage. Steel piles that support the PV racking system will be removed and either reused or recycled to the maximum amount possible. Below ground portions of the supports will either be removed or cut off at least three feet below ground surface and left in place.
• The demolition debris and removed equipment will be safely removed from the premises and transported to an appropriately licensed disposal facility or recycling center. Photovoltaic modules will either be reused, recycled or disposed of in accordance with applicable laws at the time of decommissioning.
• During the disassembly and demolition process, materials will be segregated and temporarily placed in gathering areas for transportation. Various materials including, but not limited to, concrete, steel, aluminum, and copper will be temporarily stockpiled at or near a designated processing location pending transport to an appropriate offsite recycling facility. All such materials will then be transported from the site to approved designated facilities for recycling, scrapping or disposal. All metals will be recycled to the extent practical given the recycling options available at the time of decommissioning.
• Areas where excavation is required will be backfilled with natural material and compacted. Any voids left from the removal of foundations will be backfilled with surrounding subsoil and topsoil and fine graded to ensure suitable drainage and reclamation of natural grades.
• Soil management and recontouring operations will be conducted so as to minimize the surface area disturbance and implement the activities in the safest and most efficient manner and in accordance with applicable local requirements. Major earthwork is not anticipated as construction of the site will not alter the general grade across the site.
• To account for post-decommissioning dust control, areas of exposed soils will be revegetated, consistent with the expected future use of the site and State or County requirements. The native dry grass vegetation will be reestablished to prevent the spread of weeds. Mulching or palliatives may be used for temporary dust control until vegetation is established.

During decommissioning, project components that are no longer needed will be removed from the site and recycled, reused or disposed of at an appropriately licensed disposal facility. We follow best practices for properly and safely removing the solar panels from the site. The demolition debris and equipment will be safely removed from the premises and transported to an appropriately licensed disposal facility or recycling center. Photovoltaic modules will either be re-used, recycled or disposed of in accordance with applicable laws at the time of decommissioning.

We work closely with our installation subcontractors to formalize removal and recycling best practices during construction. We pre-plan for shipping those damaged modules to the closest facility and preemptively include that cost in our financial modeling to ensure we're responsibly disposing of all waste during construction, and at all phases of the project.

Solar panels do not emit any noise. During daytime operation the inverters used in the project to convert the direct current (DC) electricity that the solar facility produces to alternating current (AC) electricity, which the electrical grid uses, create noise less than that of a residential air conditioning unit (~50db) that can only be detected within 300 feet of the units (outside of which noise returns to ambient levels). No homes will be within 300 feet of the inverters; therefore, no residents will be able to detect any sound from the facility.

No bright lights will be used during the construction or operation phases of the solar farm. A  project of this size is typically built from start to finish in around 4-5 months, with much of the activity taking place over weeks not months, and only during daylight hours. The solar facility only operates during daylight hours and has no site lighting associated with it. Solar panels are designed to absorb sunlight rather than reflect it. The solar panels Pivot uses are coated with anti-reflective coating that maximizes light collection to efficiently produce electrical energy.