fREQUENTLY aSKED qUESTIONs
I’VE HEARD THIS PROJECT IS 1800 ACRES. WILL THERE BE SOLAR PANELS ON ALL 1800 ACRES?
Flint Mine Solar, the developer of the project, is restricted by state regulations as to where they can put panels. Any land designated as wetland habitat cannot be used for panels. So, while Flint Mine Solar is looking to acquire rights to 1800 acres, they wouldn’t be able to build panels on all of those acres. Because of the wetland regulations and the constraints of the natural terrain, Flint Mine Solar is only planning to build a maximum of 600 acres of panels. This will not be one continuous block of panels, they will mostly be smaller arrays of 20-50 acres.
WILL THE PANELS BE VISIBLE FROM THE ROAD?
The proposed layout of panels from the Flint Mine Solar project has them minimally visible from 385 and 9W. This is in contrast to the Hecate project, which does have arrays of panels that will be visible from 385.
HOW WILL THE FLINT MINE SOLAR PROJECT AFFECT AGRICULTURE IN GREENE COUNTY?
Some people have said that the land that would go to solar projects such as Flint Mine and Hecate is “prime farmland.” Local farmers tell a different story. Most of the land around Coxsackie and Athens has a heavy clay component, making the land drain poorly. That makes it difficult to work with tractors in wet years - like this year. Dairy farming, once popular in Greene County, has almost vanished. Milk prices are at a 10 year low and NY State has lost 27% of dairy farms in the last decade. It is highly unlikely that much of this land has a future in agriculture, regardless of whether solar projects come to our area.
HOW DOES THE FLINT MINE PROJECT AFFECT THREATENED AND ENDANGERED SPECIES?
As farmers take land out of haying production, our area is losing grassland habitat as shrubs and trees grow on those once open fields. Flint Mine Solar is working with an environmental consulting firm that will help establish protections for those grassland habitats for the life of the project. To do this, those lands will be mowed once or twice a year to ensure they remain open grasslands. This means that the Flint Mine Solar project might actually preserve more grassland habitat than if the project didn’t happen.
WILL SOLAR HURT OUR LOCAL TOURISM?
The economies of the towns of Coxsackie and Athens rely minimally on tourism. Most tourists coming to the area are heading to the historic town centers, which won’t be affected by the solar projects. Even so, there is no evidence that the presence of solar panels would negatively affect tourism. There are many rural communities with significant acreage in solar panels that continue to have robust tourism industries. Shelburne Farms - a 1400 acre working farm that is a major tourist destination in that area - even worked with their local utility company Green Mountain Power to build a “solar orchard.” Shelburne, Vermont attracts tourists year round for outdoor activities and the solar arrays have not damaged their tourism.