About the Project
What is the planned transmission route?
The route of the electric line from the project to existing transmission infrastructure is still being developed. Negotiations with landowners are in progress.
Once that route is established, various studies will commence, including: environmental, sound, historical, and more.
What are the setbacks from the wind turbines?
The Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES) has established minimum setbacks for wind energy projects. These setbacks will be applied in addition to site specific setbacks based on wetlands, archaeological sites, wildlife habitats, sound, flicker, and more.
ORES minimum setbacks are calculated using the tip height of the proposed turbine and range from 1.1x at a public road or property line to 2.0x from a non-participating residence.
How much noise will the turbines make?
Decibel levels will vary based on the type of turbine used, atmospheric and topographic conditions, and distance from the turbine. As the Maple Harvest project develops, turbine locations are continuously being shifted based on new studies and local and statewide ordinances to reach the optimal placement with the fewest effects from sound on nearby landowners.
ORES regulates sound from wind energy projects, including a limit of 55dBa across any non-participating property (except delineated wetlands) and 45dBA at the outside of any non-participating residence.
What is the proposed project?
Maple Harvest is proposing the development, construction, and operation of a wind facility containing approximately 20-25 wind turbines and about 150 megawatts (MW) of generating capacity in the towns of Otisco,Tully, and LaFayette in Onondaga County, NY.
Major components of the project include the turbines, electrical power collector system, fiber optic communications lines, two meteorological towers (“met towers”), and access roads to the met tower sites, turbines, and their ancillary components and infrastructure.
Who is developing the project?
Palmer Capital has four decades and $2.65 billion in experience with renewable energy, and develops wind, solar, battery storage, and other clean energy projects across the country.
Why was this location picked?
This location was picked for its relatively high wind speeds. Publicly available wind maps identified this site as having a suitable wind energy resource, and this assumption is being confirmed through on-site monitoring.
What are the project’s economic benefits?
Wind energy represents a significant investment in the host communities. In addition to the installed equipment, economic benefits include payments to local landowners, short- and long-term job creation, and spending on goods and services in supporting industries. The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) released a study analyzing economic benefits from NYS’s Renewable Portfolio Standard, finding that every megawatt-hour of renewable energy generated under the RPS resulted in approximately $27 of direct investment. The bulk of the energy production and spending came from wind farms.
In addition, projects typically enter into a Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) agreement with the host communities to provide ongoing revenue to those communities. In New York, typical PILOT agreements for wind farms range from $6,000-$9,200 per MW annually. These payments generate meaningful financial support for town communities, school systems, and other entities.
Will the energy produced by this project be consumed locally?
Imagine a drop of water in a bucket. Once the drop is added, it is indistinguishable from the other drops. Electricity behaves similarly. The flow of electrons is electricity. An electron flowing through the utility system cannot be distinguished from other electrons. Electrons will flow through wires to be used by the nearest consumer. More electrons generated locally means that there is less demand for electrons to be transmitted from farther away into the region.
Are local customers able to buy power from the project?
The energy from the project will most likely be sold to NYSERDA for the benefit of ratepayers in New York. As part of that process, the project will provide a Host Community Benefit to residential customers in the Towns of Otisco, Tully, and Lafayette. The Host Community Benefit is a credit on customers’ utility bills for the first 10 years of operation. These payments will be distributed equally among all residential utility customers within these municipalities, and complement the many other benefits brought to the community from this project (including any PILOT or other community agreements). More information on this program issued by the New York State Public Service Commission can be found here.
What will happen at the end of the project’s lifespan?
Typically, wind turbines have a lifespan of 25-30 years before they must be repowered or decommissioned; both of which are processes that the project owner is responsible for completing.
Repowering the turbines means replacing major turbine equipment to prolong the facility's operations. The scope of these replacements could be as minor as individual blades or gearboxes, or as extensive as replacing the entire turbine and foundation. Decommissioning the project includes dismantling and removal of facility components to 3-4’ below grade and restoring the surrounding land. A decommissioning plan will be included in the project’s permit application. For more information on this process, the Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy has a helpful Wind Energy End of Service Guide.
The project will provide financial assurance to cover the cost, plus contingency, of decommissioning the project. The value of the assurance will be reviewed regularly throughout the project’s operations to ensure it’s sufficient as market conditions change.