The New York State Office of Renewable Energy Siting and Electric Transmission (ORES) has issued a final siting permit to Boralex LLC for the Fort Edward Solar Project, a 100-megawatt (MW) solar facility in the Town of Fort Edward, Washington County.
The project is expected to be operational by 2030.
The facility will generate enough clean energy to power approximately 25,600 average-sized homes and is expected to create approximately 120 full-time equivalent construction jobs.
Over its operational life, the project will deliver more than $14 million in community benefits to the Town of Fort Edward, local school districts, and Washington County through PILOT payments and a Host Community Benefit Agreement. Residents of the Town of Fort Edward will also receive $500,000 in utility bill credits over the first 10 years of operation.
“This project advances New York’s clean energy goals and serves as a great example of how stakeholders and developers can work together to thoughtfully design a project that benefits community and landowner resilience, and the environment on both the local and state level,” said Office of Renewable Energy Siting and Electric Transmission Interim Executive Director Jason Zehr, in a statement.
During the permitting process, the project’s footprint was reduced by 146 acres in response to stakeholder feedback, with impacts to agriculture, wetlands, and wildlife significantly reduced. The project will fully offset residual environmental impacts through wetland protection, creation, and restoration, as well as habitat enhancement for threatened and endangered species.
The Fort Edward Solar permit brings ORES’ total approved projects to 36 large-scale solar and wind developments, totaling more than 5.1 gigawatts (GW) of clean energy across New York State.
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