SULLIVAN COUNTY, NY — Ten years ago, the Sullivan County Legislature set out to reduce by 2020 half of the greenhouse gas emissions produced by the county government.

The legislature laid out in its 2014 Climate Action Plan three ways to achieve that goal: Use solar and wind energy at county facilities, transition the county’s passenger fleet to hybrid vehicles, and reduce emissions from municipal solid waste.

The county made a giant leap in 2017, when it reduced emissions in its buildings by 52 percent. That year, the county installed a 2.4-megawatt photovoltaic (PV) system at its nursing home, Sunset Lake Care Center in Liberty. Solar installations of this capacity can under optimal conditions supply more than 1,600 homes. Sunset Lake’s PV system powers the whole nursing home and produces enough extra electricity to supply other county buildings as well.

The result? The care center has between 2016 and 2020 reduced its annual carbon emissions by roughly 81 percent, according to the Climate Action Plan’s 2022 update.

The solar project is financed through a power purchase agreement with Tesla, which owns the PV system. The county pays Tesla for the electricity the system produces at a pre-negotiated per-kilowatt-hour rate.

Sullivan County’s climate plan predates the state’s. It wasn’t until 2019 that the New York State Legislature passed its Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, whose goal for the state government is an emission-free electricity system by 2040.

Solar at home

Residential and community solar projects have also made a substantial dent in the emissions produced in Sullivan County. As of 2021, there were 644 solar energy installations in the county, including:

• 585 residential installations with a capacity of 5.2 megawatts;
• 43 small commercial installations with a capacity of 1.1 megawatts; and
• 16 commercial/industrial installations, with a capacity of 40.3 megawatts.

In total, the projects produce 53,000,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) annually.

Buselli Solutions was a heating and plumbing company that transitioned to residential solar systems after customers grew frustrated with fluctuating oil prices. The company also installs energy-efficient ductless (also called mini-split) air conditioners.

“It’s typically a 10-year return on investment,” said owner Blair Buselli said. “You’re essentially buying your next 30 years’ worth of electricity today at today’s prices for about a third of the cost.”

Buselli Solutions also caters to small businesses, and in 2020 installed the Jeffersonville Bakeshop’s 62-panel rooftop array. The system has kept 166,450 pounds of carbon dioxide from spewing into the atmosphere, Buselli said, a benefit equal to planting 1,257 trees.

“Not one problem in five years of having the system,” said Michael Huber, the Jeffersonville Bakeshop’s co-owner.

Installing solar panels on one’s own property might not be a viable option for everyone. That’s where community solar projects come in.

The first community solar farm was installed in 2007 in California, and the practice spread rapidly from there. Solar farms are now located throughout Sullivan County, including in Bethel, Callicoon, and Monticello.

Subscribers to these large, offsite solar arrays pay a monthly fee for a number of the panels that feed electricity to the grid. In return, subscribers receive a credit on their electricity bill. To create a further incentive, the fee subscribers pay will always be less than the credit they receive.

“Solar is an ever-changing trade technology,” Buselli said.

See these related stories at riverreporter.com:

“Clean Path NY Still moving along”

“Sullivan County asked and Clean Path NY answered”