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Large-Scale Solar Project Expands Cornell's Renewable Energy Portfolio

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office announced in early July that the New York State Electric Research and Development Agency (NYSERDA) will fund large-scale solar array at Cornell. The university will partner with grant awardee Distributed Sun LLC. This project advances the goals of the new Southern Tier plan to obtain 2 percent of the region’s electricity from solar power by 2032.

Plans call for Distributed Sun to install 6,766 solar photovoltaic panels on a 10-acre Cornell property site near the Ithaca Tompkins Regional Airport. The solar photovoltaic panel array, pending approval from the town of Lansing and finalizing the developer agreement, will be Cornell’s first large-scale solar project and is expected to produce about 2.5 million kilowatt-hours annually, or about 1 percent of Cornell’s total electricity use.

“Pending local approvals, this represents a significant step to advance Cornell’s renewable energy portfolio," said Kyu Whang, Cornell vice president for facilities."A Lansing solar facility would align with the carbon reduction goals of Cornell, Tompkins County and New York state.”

The Cornell and Distributed Sun solar array aligns with the Southern Tier’s regional plan to reduce carbon emission and strengthen the local economy. The Southern Tier Regional Economic Development Council and the Tompkins County Legislature recently endorsed the 22-point “Cleaner Greener Southern Tier” plan, which establishes goals for reducing carbon emissions by 32 percent over 20 years.

Cornell Chronicle, 7/12/13