Solar/Electric Project Approved For Sewage Treatment Plant

By Andrew Gorosko

Inland Wetlands Commission (IWC) members have approved plans to install solar energy equipment at the municipal sewage treatment plant to produce electricity for use there.

Following review of the application submitted by OPEL Solar, Inc, of Shelton on behalf of the town public works department, IWC members on January 25 unanimously approved the solar/electric project.

The energy produced by photovoltaic solar arrays would provide approximately 30 percent of the electricity required by the sewage plant, according to Fred Hurley, town public works director.

The facility at 24 Commerce Road is one of the heaviest users of electricity locally, considering the amount of electrical equipment which it operates, including pumps.

An about 100-foot-long section of chain-link security fencing adjacent to the solar equipment would pass through an area that is under IWC jurisdiction, requiring the IWC review of the project. The IWC conducted a public hearing on the solar project on January 11.

In approving the solar/electric project on January 25, IWC members placed several conditions on their endorsement.

Erosion and sedimentation control devices must be installed at the site before construction starts and be maintained as required by the town conservation official.

The conservation official must be notified one week before the construction project starts and also notified when the project is finished.

A copy of the IWC-approved construction plans must be kept at the site for reference.

Also, the conservation official must inspect and approve the marked limits of physical disturbance at the site before activity starts there.

The solar arrays would generate about 75 kilowatts of electricity. To maximize their electrical output, the photovoltaic arrays would track the course of the sun across the sky from east to west during the course of a day.

The solar panels should provide about 25 to 30 years of electric generation service. At their tallest point, the solar panels would stand about 8½ feet high. The solar arrays would be clustered at the site and positioned atop a series of vertical I-beams.

The project does not require approval from the Planning and Zoning Commission.

The overall solar/electric project has a budget extending up to about $513,000. About $338,000 of that amount would be covered by a Connecticut Clean Energy Fund grant, with the town’s Water & Sewer Authority (WSA) having authorized an additional $175,000 in spending for the project from its capital reserve fund.

The WSA oversees operations the sewage plant, which provides wastewater treatment for the central municipal sewer system. The plant started operation in 1997.