A group of residents is preparing to fight a proposed 85-acre solar array in Shaftsbury that would feed 20 megawatts of power into the electric grid, potentially ranking among the largest projects in Vermont.
VT Real Estate Holdings 1 LLC, also called Shaftsbury Solar, is in the process of acquiring 191 acres off Route 7, according to Tom Swank, president of SunEast Development. The project would be owned by Freepoint Solar, a wholly owned subsidiary of Freepoint Commodities, a Connecticut-based energy investment and trading company.
Vermont is legally obligated to significantly reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, which cause climate change, in set amounts by 2025, 2030 and 2050. So far, it’s unclear whether or how the project would contribute to that goal.
Energy from the project would be transmitted into the New England power grid, Swank said, which is working on the project with Freepoint Solar. But project managers haven’t yet contracted with a utility that would purchase the power, he said.
While the project is in the first stages of seeking approval from the state Public Utility Commission, which regulates energy projects, project managers have been working with ISO New England and are “fairly far along that process with them,” Swank said.
“Really, the permit will be the gating item as far as timeline for getting this completed,” he said.
About 30 residents gathered this week to discuss objections to the project and paths forward, said neighbor Jesse McDougall. He called the sentiments in the room “contained fury.”
“This is not your run-of-the-mill solar farm or solar installation,” McDougall said.
Residents are concerned about the sheer size of the project, long-term damage to the land from the solar installation and any tree clearing needed on the property, and impacts on views for surrounding landowners.
The fenced perimeter of the project is equivalent in size to about 65 football fields. Much of that area would be covered in panels.
Swank said the group chose the site because of its limited visibility to roads and property owners.
He estimated that about 30 acres of forest — a third of the project area — would need to be cleared, but said that number could change based on siting requirements from the Public Utility Commission.
Though the project would be hidden from most roads and properties, according to Swank, the array would cover two parcels of land adjacent to Holy Smoke Road. McDougall, who lives on the road, said it “was named Holy Smoke Road because of the view, in both directions.”
Residents have also raised questions about where the power would go, and whether the project would benefit Vermont.
Swank said he doesn’t know yet whether the project managers would sell the power to a utility in Vermont or elsewhere. “It will likely be someone within the state of Vermont but wouldn’t necessarily have to be.”
Kristin Carlson, a representative with Green Mountain Power, said the utility is not currently involved in conversations about purchasing power from the project.
Swank said he believes the project will benefit southern Vermont either way.
“Even if someone from out of state is technically buying the power, that’s just really a financial transaction, and the power being delivered out to the grid in that area is beneficial to consumers of power in the southern Vermont area,” he said.
Shaftsbury town officials largely expressed agreement with a number of residents who spoke up at a selectboard meeting Monday night, promising to look into whether they could place a question about the project on the Town Meeting Day ballot.
“None of us are against solar, but we want it done right, and this is not the right way to do it, as far as I’m concerned,” said Joe Barber, a member of the Shaftsbury selectboard.
Any vote, however, would be non-binding, as the town of Shaftsbury has no real sway in the project’s development.
“Even though it may be that the whole town doesn’t want it, we’re powerless to stop it,” McDougall said.
Bill Colvin, executive director of the Bennington County Regional Commission, said the commission holds party status, and will weigh in on the project’s compliance or lack thereof with the county’s regional energy plan.
While the commission has so far received a limited amount of information about the project, at first blush, it appears the sited land contains areas that have been identified as ideal for solar and “prime agricultural land.”
Swank said the project managers are in the process of closing on the land.
“It will be closed well before permits are received,” he said.
McDougall said the group has hired a lawyer and is trying to gather money to purchase and conserve the land themselves.
Kit Ausschnitt, who owns a home on Holy Smoke Road, told selectboard members about the group’s efforts to organize on Tuesday.
“We’re going to fight this every step of the way,” Ausschnitt said.