EGEB: New York State’s first offshore wind farm leaps forward
– Mar. 22nd 2021 10:22 am ET
In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):
- New York State approves a power cable for Deepwater Wind South Fork offshore wind farm.
- Virginia nonprofit Give Solar works with Habitat for Humanity to provide solar for Habitat homeowners.
- UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.
New York’s South Fork wind farm
New York State’s Public Service Commission has approved an underground cable that would link the South Fork offshore wind farm to the power grid. This is a major win for what will be New York’s first offshore wind farm.
Deepwater Wind South Fork will be a 15-turbine, 130 megawatt wind farm 35 miles off the Montauk coast. It will be connected to an East Hampton power substation through the 7.6 miles of underground cable that was approved. The transmission line is expected to be operational by 2023, but it still requires federal permits to proceed.
New York governor Andrew Cuomo said:
When people say it’s never been done before, New York shows them how to get it done, and this transmission power line – the first of its kind in the state – will showcase what the future of energy will look like.
Public Service Commission chairman John B. Howard said:
With this decision, we demonstrate the clear need for the project while avoiding or minimizing adverse environmental impacts.
New York State has set a goal of around 9,000 megawatts of wind power by 2035. In January, the state announced two offshore wind contracts with energy giant Equinor totaling nearly 2,500 megawatts: 1,260 MW from Empire Wind 2, southeast of Long Island, and another 1,230 MW from Beacon Wind 1, 60 miles east of Montauk Point.
Give Solar and Habitat for Humanity
Here’s a great model in Virginia that helps nonprofits and low-income households run on solar energy that certainly has the potential to be applied on a wider scale.
Virginia-based Give Solar, which offers solar solutions for nonprofits and low-income households through crowdfunding and solar “barn raising,” is partnering with Central Valley Habitat for Humanity in Bridgewater, Virginia, to make solar energy available for Habitat homeowners. Habitat homeowners help build their own homes alongside volunteers and pay an affordable mortgage. On the solar front, volunteers implement energy efficiency improvements to the building, and solar professionals install the PV system.
WHXV explains:
Give Solar will pay the cost of the solar panels up front and then the homeowners will pay that back over the term of their mortgage, but by using solar energy the families will ultimately save $20 per month.
The ultimate goal is for 20 Habitat for Humanity homes to have solar energy in the next five years.
To meet that goal, the organization is trying to raise $100,000 with their Solar Seed Fund.
Jeff Heie, director of Give Solar, said:
The Give Solar project aims to reduce homeowners’ electricity expense through solar power, which is not only good for the environment but also puts money back in their pocketbook.
It’s meaningful to me to be able to address some of the poverty that exists in this community through clean energy.
Volunteers installed 24 solar panels on a Habitat for Humanity home on Friday, and five other completed projects are showcased on their website. If you’d like to donate to the project, you can do so here.
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About the Author
Michelle Lewis
Michelle Lewis is a writer and editor on Electrek and an editor on DroneDJ, 9to5Mac, and 9to5Google. She lives in St. Petersburg, Florida. She has previously worked for Fast Company, the Guardian, News Deeply, Time, and others. Message Michelle on Twitter or at michelle@9to5mac.com. Check out her personal blog.
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