Solar energy systems developer Syncarpha Capital has received the permission to operate its Tewksbury Landfill project, which hosts a 3.6-MW DC/2.8 MW AC ballast-mounted solar array.
The 50-acre Sutton Brook Disposal Area supplies energy to the City of Everett, local National Grid residents and the Tufts University through its Community Solar program.
The estimated annual output from this array is 4,535,000 kWh, which is equivalent to avoiding CO2 emissions from 361,718 gallons of gasoline consumed or equivalent to avoiding CO2 emissions from 3,556,645 pounds of coal burned. The energy produced is enough to power more than 400 local homes.
The system includes an approximately 2-MW AC battery storage system. It will be connected to the National Grid electric utility grid.
"We are very excited to bring this project online. It's great we are able to make a positive impact on the grid while also repurposing an environmentally encumbered tract of land" says Graeme Dutkowsky, VP of Construction - Syncarpha Capital. "There were many challenges encountered along the way and it wouldn't have been possible to overcome them without open lines of communication and cooperation among all project stakeholders."
Solar power projects are land intensive, sometimes requiring 10 acres per 1 MW capacity. Increasingly, developers are siting solar farms on capped landfills, such as Sunnyside project in Houston and the Solar Star Urbana Landfill Community Solar in Illinois.
