Hecate Energy LLC’s Cider Solar Project Lead discusses New York’s new ORES
When New York State passed the Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth and Community Benefit Act as part of its FY20-21 budget, it created a first in the nation Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES) to dramatically accelerate the siting and construction of large-scale renewable energy projects.
The new regulations, known as Section 94-c, will serve as a one-stop-shop for the coordinated, timely review of proposed major renewable energy facilities, with the goal of moving the state towards its aggressive climate and clean energy targets.
Hecate Energy’s Cider Solar Farm will be the test case for the new permitting process, representing the first new application to be submitted under Section 94-c for large-scale renewable projects. If approved, the 500 MW solar project would be the largest solar project ever built in New York State.
“The promulgation of that law was involved and had a lot of feedback from various agencies involved,” Harrison Luna, Hecate project lead, told NPM. “I think ORES has done a good job in terms of putting together something that's very comprehensive and workable. So, following that process, even before putting an application in, has been a positive experience and a regenerative process.”
Under the new law, all large-scale renewable energy projects 25 MW or larger are now required to obtain a siting permit from the ORES for new construction or expansion. Projects already in the initial phases of the current Article 10 process through the State’s Siting Board can remain in Article 10 or opt to transfer into the new siting process.
To date, 23 projects have opted out of the Article 10 queue and have transferred to Section 94-c, including 21 solar and two onshore wind projects.
The new regulations eliminate several rules, like the need for extensive ambient noise studies. But it also imposes earlier timelines and more stringent requirements on developers, such as including setbacks for solar and wind in design drawings and an emphasis on early identification of New York State-listed species and their habitats.
The Cider Solar project, to be built in the Western New York towns of Elba and Oakfield, represents a USD 500m-plus private infrastructure investment that is expected to create over 500 construction jobs and will be capable of supplying 920,000 MWh of renewable electricity per year – enough to power more than 120,000 New York households.
The solar project is expected to offset over 420,000 tons of CO2 per year and will also deliver significant new revenue to local governments, funding essential services like volunteer fire departments, first responders, and the Haxton Memorial Library in Oakfield.
“New York State has among the most ambitious renewable and climate change goals in the country, and at the same time one of the most comprehensive permitting processes in the country,” Luna said. “So, getting to the goal line is going to take a lot of work and on a timeline that's faster than some other states. We think projects like this are important in meeting those goals. This is the largest one in New York State to my knowledge to date, but I do not think it is the last of its scale. I think these kinds of projects are necessary to get to where the state wants to be.”
The Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) requires the state to achieve a carbon-free electricity system by 2040 and reduce greenhouse gas emissions 85 percent below 1990 levels by 2050, setting a new standard for states and the nation to expedite the transition to a clean energy economy.
The Act also calls for 70 percent renewable energy by 2030, including 6,000 MW of solar by 2025, 3,000 MW of energy storage by 2030 and 9,000 MW of offshore wind by 2035.
Local collaboration
Luna credits much of the project’s success to the collaborative process between the project developers and local leadership, whom he says helped balance the needs of the communities while being mindful of the goals of the project.
“I think it's a matter of a few different things, and one of them is just interfacing early and often and being genuine in your concern for a community,” Luna said. “These kinds of projects have largely local impacts just by the nature of the technology. Solar panels do not stand very high above the ground and produce no emissions, so the kinds of impacts that you have on the area around you are extremely local. I think our approach to community involvement mirrors that perspective that local is important, so we try early and often to interact with stakeholders directly in your area, your towns, with your neighbors.”
Initially, the project sought leases and options for approximately 4,000 acres of land in the towns of Elba and Oakfield in Genesee County. As the understanding of local priorities grew clearer, detailed siting and study efforts allowed Hecate to refine the project’s footprint to approximately 2,800 acres of land across the two towns.
“The interactions have been positive, the spirit has been collaborative and cooperative, and I think it makes the project a lot better,” Luna said. “It also serves the community a lot better because the voices of the community are baked into the process. We learn, for example, what kinds of setbacks people want. We learn what kind of vegetative screening is necessary in one place versus another, and we can go ahead early in the process and accommodate that.”
Hecate has held three public information open houses for area residents and have kept the lines of communication open since the project’s inception.
“I keep an office hours-type situation where every week I’ll hold an hour--over the past year it's been on Zoom--to be available for anybody,” Luna said. “It’s totally impromptu, more casual than an open house, and I’ll be there to answer any questions. It is kind of just keeping an open door and availability for that interaction. Just having a personal interaction makes everything a whole lot better in terms of learning how the project can be better, and in terms of listening and interacting with folks.”