Reflecting on the wisdom of a landfill solar farm

What seemed like an easy project for a proposed solar farm at the now defunct North East Landfill has suddenly become a lot more complicated. That’s because instead of a simple lease between BQ Energy of Poughkeepsie and the town of North East, the deal introduces serious environmental and zoning concerns.

So, although the town would earn $10,000 in annual rent for the foreseeable future (and there are questions about whether such reimbursement is fair), the true costs could potentially be extremely high in the final analysis. 

There was a special meeting held on Monday, Aug. 24, at the NorthEast-Millerton Library Annex to discuss the matter. At that meeting numerous residents expressed their fears about a worst-case scenario. The solar arrays could, some said, pierce the landfill cap meant to keep hazardous waste at bay. Concerns were raised about negative impacts on groundwater, soil, air resources, vegetation, wildlife, wildlife habitats and endangered species. Those are real worries about matters that could lead to irreversible damage.

That the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) reported nearby homes rely on public water, which resulted in a downgrading of the landfill’s Superfund status, is simply erroneous. Those homes rely on well water — water that could potentially be contaminated by breaches in the landfill and/or polluted run off. 

One resident, Dr. Andrew Wallach, pointed out that solar energy is generated by nuclear fission — “the same process in nuclear power plants and atomic bombs.” He noted that the long-term effects of solar farms are as-of-yet unknown.

“As a physician who regularly cares for patients with cancer, related to environmental exposures, I am very concerned,” he told the board.

Wallach also worried about the Lake Effect, which is when birds fly into the solar panels after mistakenly taking them for the reflective surface of water. The area surrounding the landfill hosts a wide variety of bird species, including bald eagles — all of which could be injured or killed as a result of the Lake Effect.

Another problem? Solar farms are not permitted in the A5A zone where the landfill is located at 41 Reagon Road. That means the town would have to rezone the district to permit commercial usage. Once the A5A zone changes, Councilman Ralph Fedele said, it changes forever.

“Once you set a precedent of allowing an industrial use in the A5A, you open yourself up to all of the other issues in the area,” he said. 

Very true. And who would really want that agricultural zone — nestled in among the Harlem Valley Rail Trail, lovely rural homes and conservation areas — to be forever altered? Let’s imagine for a moment the placement of solar arrays on the landfill would only change its appearance and not cause any environmental damage (which at this point seems to be unlikely). Such a situation still leaves something to be desired. Who, after all, wants to look out  their window and see photo voltaic panels reflecting in the sun? Fedele admitted that he would not.

“I know as a landowner, if there were going to be a proposed solar farm in my backyard or in my view on my property, I would probably be opposed to it just from the visual standpoint alone,” he said.

That’s a pretty honest statement. 

Now, that’s not to say that renewable energies like solar, wind or thermal don’t have their place. They do, and they’re wonderful alternatives to the traditional electricity on which most of us now rely. But there’s a time and a place for everything. We need to ask ourselves if this is the ideal time and place for use of the town’s landfill and area resources as a solar farm before making any commitments to BQ Energy.