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Waterford Reconsiders 75-Acre Solar Farm

jaidee from Pixabay

A proposed 75-acre solar farm in the town of Waterford, Connecticut, is headed for a public hearing just two years after it was rejected by the Connecticut Siting Council.

Jean-Paul La Marche is the director of development at Greenskies Energy, the company behind the solar farm project.

He says they’ve listened to previous concerns and have re-evaluated the size and scope of the farm.

“We’ve done over a 100 test pits across the entire site to look at the soil beneath the surface. We’ve classified the soil and done tests on that and then focused on plant and animal studies based off of the direction of DEEP and the Natural Diversity Database.”         

The original plan for the farm was almost 100 acres in size and had drawn criticism from local environmental groups and residents over stormwater run-off into nearby rivers and the impact it would have on wildlife.

Waterford First Selectman Rob Brule says the town’s residents are not against alternative energy, but deserve to know what could end up in their backyard.

“They’re under an initiative from the state and the federal government to look at alternative energy sources, so we’re not saying that’s wrong. What we’re saying is we want to be heard, we want our residents to be heard. And they granted that.”        

If constructed, the farm would supply electricity for around 3,000 homes.