About The Project
Spring 2018
October 2018
November 2018
February 2019
March 2019
April 2019
July 2019
October 2019
November 2019
December 2019
Currently, we are starting the comprehensive application process required by New York's Article 10 regulations. The application will include studies of wildlife, noise, visual impacts, shadows, wetlands, geology, archaeology, historic structures, economic benefits and many other topics required by state regulations. In parallel with the Article 10 certification process, we are working continually to discuss the project with stakeholders and landowners interested in participating in the Project, and refining the project design.
We are exploring various ways of co-locating agriculture with the solar array to maintain the land as productive farmland while harvesting solar energy for electricity at the same time. We will develop a plan detailing these options as part of the public review process.
In the first 20 years of project operation, Horseshoe Solar is projected to pay millions of dollars in property taxes, lease payments to landowners, salaries to employees, and payments for local goods and services, resulting in a significant increase in economic activity in Livingston County. Benefits to schools, town, and county governments will be realized from annual payments made under a payment-in-lieu-of-tax (PILOT) agreement.
New York has set ambitious targets to generate up to 50% of its electricity from renewable sources and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% by 2030. New York is starting with a significant base of renewable energy generation. Using sources such as hydropower, solar, and wind, New York percentage of renewable energy generation was 20% in 2010 and 22% in 2013. To reach 50%, New York plans to encourage installation of more wind, solar, and renewable generation and improved efficiency to reduce electricity consumption.
As of March 2018, over 1200 MW of solar energy was operating in New York, generating enough electricity to power over 200,000 New York households. This generation offsets the need to import or burn other fuels, helping to reduce fuel prices and air emissions.
Solar energy and other renewable energy projects generate substantial economic benefits for New York. According to NYSEIA, there are more than 9,000 solar jobs in NY, and solar energy projects have invested over $3.5 billion dollars in New York businesses, landowners, and municipalities.
Horseshoe Solar is an unparalleled development opportunity for the host towns, with millions to be invested in the local economy over the life of the project. After careful evaluation, we selected this area for the project because of:
We take our commitment to our local host community seriously and look forward to continuing to work closely with Caledonia and Rush, the host towns in Livingston and Monroe Counties, contributing to the area's economic development, and to providing an additional supply of clean, homegrown energy in New York. We disclose any potential conflicts of interest between landowners and municipal officers for transparency.
To avoid and minimize impacts to wildlife and other natural resources, we work with state and federal agencies and other interested stakeholders to site, build, and operate our facilities responsibly. This includes robust pre-construction wildlife and habitat surveys, early and often communication with wildlife agencies, and operational monitoring to ensure risk to wildlife is minimized. We are investigating grazing sheep as a grounds maintenance method to preserve the agricultural land use.
Solar farms have a light impact on farmland. Topsoil is left in place during construction and protected from erosion for the life of the project. When the project is decommissioned, the farmland will be returned to production after a rejuvenating rest for the soil, much like the Conservation Reserve Program of the USDA, which has been storing carbon in resting farmland across the US for decades.