Landfill solar project advances in Hadley

HADLEY — A 1.3-megawatt solar project proposed for the town’s capped landfill, which could yield $4.1 million in payments and energy savings over the next 25 years, is another step closer to reality.

The Select Board Monday voted unanimously in favor of issuing a nonbinding notice of intent, and to make a $950 payment to Power Options, a nonprofit that handles the competitive bidding process, so that photovoltaics could be placed on a portion of the 14.6-acre site off Cemetery Road.

The plan calls for Sunwealth, an investment company located in Cambridge, to pursue the project on land next to the current transfer station.

Shardool Parmar, who has co-chaired the Solar Landfill Steering Committee, said the site is an underused property, this proposal is a great example of reuse and the “town’s investment is basically zero.”

Select Board Chairman Randy Izer said since the notice of intent doesn’t commit the town, he didn’t have concerns with the vote. “To me, it’s free money,” Izer said.

The project would have to be approved by the Planning Board and reviewed by the Conservation Commission, with the developer handling that work.

The Select Board had a few questions, with member Molly Keegan asking about what other communities have experience with Sunwealth, and from member David J. Fill II, who asked about possible compromises to the landfill that the town is mandated to test regularly.

Parmar said the developer is likely to use weighted ballasts and that there would be no penetration of the lining. Any concerns about compromising the landfill could be written into a contract with Sunwealth, he said.

Another concern is whether this would affect the transfer station that is operated by Solid Waste Solutions. Select Board member Jane Nevinsmith, the liaison to the solar committee, said the transfer station’s footprint could change slightly.

Michael Docter, the other co-chair of the solar committee, said the project has already been scaled back, meaning there will be no battery storage and less affect on the transfer station. “Minimal to no impact on them,” Docter said.

The vote came despite concerns from resident Tony Fyden that the solar committee had been meeting in secret to solicit proposals and that the committee didnt have a quorum to recommend Sunwealth.

Fyden also asked about a $12,500 appropriation to do a feasibility study, though officials said that money was approved for when the town was considering a solar project in which it would have worked directly with Eversource. That possibility went away with the passage of the federal “big beautiful bill.”

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