The Marion Energy Management Committee wants to build a solar farm on a 1.4-acre patch of land at Benson Brook that eight years ago had been vetted by the Conservation Commission for the purpose of a leaf dump.
In his research, committee member Bill Saltonstall discovered that hay bales bordering the site against the adjacent wetland area were the result of an Order of Conditions issued by the commission in response to a Notice of Intent filed by the town.
Saltonstall figures that a solar farm located safely inside the area would be able to supply approximately two-thirds of the approximate 500 megawatt hours it takes to run the Wastewater Treatment Plant’s electricity.
He told the EMC during its public meeting on Monday that Department of Public Works Director Becky Tilden told him the DPW has no plans for the site, which was briefly considered as one of the options for the DPW’s new operations center planned to sit a quarter-mile west on the opposite side of the Wastewater Treatment Plant.
Committee member Tom Friedman, an engineer newly out of the solar business, advised Saltonstall to seek 1.5 to 2 acres of land. “That’s with contingencies for all of the space and switchgears (changing of electrical equipment),” he said.
“I think we could take this to the Conservation Commission for their approval,” said Saltonstall. “I’m at the point where I need to learn what this project might cost, and I think I need to develop a list of solar developers who could give us a proposal on the site.”
Committee member Eileen Marum shared concern over getting a developer interested in such a small parcel.
According to Saltonstall, the Sippican Lands Trust and a private party own parcels between the targeted lot and Route 6. “There’s no house anywhere near there, but a house could be built close to it,” said Saltonstall.
The whole push to power Marion’s municipal buildings with electricity has proven complicated, partly because the town’s contract with Future Generation Wind (the large turbines visible from Route 25 in Wareham) has over the past four years inclusive provided 93%, 91%, 75% and approximately 80% of the town’s electric power.
“It’s a difficult moving target. … I’m not sure what size project we ought to build exactly. We ought to define more exactly what that 100% (threshold constitutes),” said Saltonstall.
Marum, who also holds a seat on the Bylaw Codification Committee and the Planning Board, confirmed that there is no time in the Town Meeting calendar to make changes in the bylaw.
Saltonstall said the Select Board supports the idea of the EMC learning more about what it can do. “Beyond that, I’m not sure what we can do,” he said.
EMC Chairman Christian Ingerslev said the committee will need permission to initiate a negotiation with a contractor. Saltonstall suggested the EMC write the Select Board about the matter.
Ingerslev was waiting to hear back on a Green Communities grant that would upgrade the transformer and outdated temperature controls at the Wastewater Treatment Plant.
Saltonstall reported that Marion now has in place a new contract for electric power but said the price has gone up from 9 to 13 cents per kilowatt hour. He said the EMC had difficulty obtaining a price (9.5/KWh) from an energy aggregator. The new plan, estimated Saltonstall, could cost the town $30,000 to $40,000 for the year.
“We need some professional advice,” said Saltonstall, citing Financial Director Judy Mooney’s agreement with his suggestion that the Southeastern Regional Planning and Economic Development District (SRPEDD) would provide a great help to towns looking at complicated electricity. The residents’ rate also expires at the end of year and needs to be negotiated, said Ingerslev.
Marum reported having noticed two car-charging stations in the parking lot of the new Travis Roy Student Center at Tabor Academy. During Planning Board adjudication, she recalled asking Tabor for 25 stations and after being turned down, asked that the necessary wiring be placed in the ground in anticipation of the inevitable. “They decided no, they would probably go with four,” she told the EMC.
Having appeared with Alanna Nelson before the Select Board on March 7, Marum and Saltonstall chalked it up as a positive meeting. Marum recalled giving new Town Administrator Geoff Gorman a historical background of the EMC, including recent work with heat pumps, LED streetlights and installations, saving the town nearly $1,500,000. “For a small town, I think that was a significant amount,” said Marum.
Saltonstall’s brother who lives in Maine has been studying ways people there can capitalize money made available for preventing inflation. He said his brother is putting together a “cookbook” to take to several communities to explain how they can use government-sponsored incentive programs. Since many of the programs are federal, Saltonstall thinks Marion will gain valuable information.
In a switch from the traditional 5:00 pm start, the next meeting of the Marion Energy Management Committee was scheduled for Monday, April 24, at 6:00 pm.
Marion Energy Management Committee
By Mick Colageo