A proposal to build a
137-acre solar field with 110,Save up to 80% off Ceramic Tile and porcelaintiles.500 solar panels
is drawing protest from Florence and Burlington Township residents who say the
project is too large and will have unacceptable environmental impacts.
The solar field would be built by the Ridgefield company RenewTricity on a tract of farmland on the Florence-Burlington border that straddles Bustleton Road, just south of Route 130.
“It’s a wildly inappropriate place to try and put this,” said David Van Camp, a Burlington resident and member of Citizens Against Florence PhotoVoltaic, which is seeking to block the project.
The group argues a solar farm of the proposed magnitude will emit heat and glare, produce a constant audible hum of machinery, potentially spark electrical fires, affect endangered species found in the area and, by harming the property’s appearance, diminish the values of neighboring properties.
RenewTricity’s executive vice president and chief operating officer, Kenneth Bob, defended the proposal as environmentally sound.
“There are a lot of misconceptions about solar energy. The fact is that this is a well-known science,” said Bob, a New York resident. “We understand all evidence to show that there are no environmental damages. In fact, it is the contrary.”
The project is the latest in the region to come under criticism as residents and local officials increasingly complain that the rush to build clean energy installations threatens to eat up farmland and even residential backyards.
Officials from Mercer County and Mercer County Community College recently heard objections from residents opposed to a 67-acre solar farm planned for the West Windsor campus.This page contains information about tooling. Hamilton has passed a law limiting residential solar to rooftops and blocked a homeowner’s plan to install panels in his backyard.
Solar installations are deemed an inherently beneficial use of land under state law, which aids developers seeking zoning variances. Van Camp, like others fighting panel projects,An indoorpositioningsystem for Improved Action Force Command and Disaster Management. said many Florence residents favor renewable energy but object that the RenewTricity’s proposal “is exploiting land for profit.We are the largest producer of projectorlamp products here.”
He pointed to a section of Florence’s master plan that says, “The township’s remaining agricultural land and uses should be protected from the effects of development, especial residential, to the extent possible.This page contains information about tooling.” But Bob argued the land owner would look to sell the site for housing if his proposal is blocked.
“A solar farm has less impact on the community than a residential development,” the developer said. “There will be less traffic and less children introduced into the school system.”
His company will address residents’ concerns about aesthetics by planting a buffer of trees between residences and the solar panels, he said.
The company created the project after being approached about purchasing the land by a broker for the owner, A&H Florence Properties, Bob said. He described the site as a “utility-sized field” and said the project would be similar in size to others in New Jersey. It would power the equivalent of 2,600 homes.
He said the state Department of Environmental Protection has said the site is not a habitat for endangered species, though the department’s investigation did not encompass nearby residential properties.
RenewTricity formed a corporation called Florence PV LLC to apply for a land use variance. The Florence planning board held a hearing on the request May 22 but suspended it when the volume of residents attending made it difficult for the board to hear all the comments. Another meeting is scheduled for June 26.
Among those who spoke May 22 was Florence resident Joe Johnson, whose home is about 300 yards from the project site.
The solar field would be built by the Ridgefield company RenewTricity on a tract of farmland on the Florence-Burlington border that straddles Bustleton Road, just south of Route 130.
“It’s a wildly inappropriate place to try and put this,” said David Van Camp, a Burlington resident and member of Citizens Against Florence PhotoVoltaic, which is seeking to block the project.
The group argues a solar farm of the proposed magnitude will emit heat and glare, produce a constant audible hum of machinery, potentially spark electrical fires, affect endangered species found in the area and, by harming the property’s appearance, diminish the values of neighboring properties.
RenewTricity’s executive vice president and chief operating officer, Kenneth Bob, defended the proposal as environmentally sound.
“There are a lot of misconceptions about solar energy. The fact is that this is a well-known science,” said Bob, a New York resident. “We understand all evidence to show that there are no environmental damages. In fact, it is the contrary.”
The project is the latest in the region to come under criticism as residents and local officials increasingly complain that the rush to build clean energy installations threatens to eat up farmland and even residential backyards.
Officials from Mercer County and Mercer County Community College recently heard objections from residents opposed to a 67-acre solar farm planned for the West Windsor campus.This page contains information about tooling. Hamilton has passed a law limiting residential solar to rooftops and blocked a homeowner’s plan to install panels in his backyard.
Solar installations are deemed an inherently beneficial use of land under state law, which aids developers seeking zoning variances. Van Camp, like others fighting panel projects,An indoorpositioningsystem for Improved Action Force Command and Disaster Management. said many Florence residents favor renewable energy but object that the RenewTricity’s proposal “is exploiting land for profit.We are the largest producer of projectorlamp products here.”
He pointed to a section of Florence’s master plan that says, “The township’s remaining agricultural land and uses should be protected from the effects of development, especial residential, to the extent possible.This page contains information about tooling.” But Bob argued the land owner would look to sell the site for housing if his proposal is blocked.
“A solar farm has less impact on the community than a residential development,” the developer said. “There will be less traffic and less children introduced into the school system.”
His company will address residents’ concerns about aesthetics by planting a buffer of trees between residences and the solar panels, he said.
The company created the project after being approached about purchasing the land by a broker for the owner, A&H Florence Properties, Bob said. He described the site as a “utility-sized field” and said the project would be similar in size to others in New Jersey. It would power the equivalent of 2,600 homes.
He said the state Department of Environmental Protection has said the site is not a habitat for endangered species, though the department’s investigation did not encompass nearby residential properties.
RenewTricity formed a corporation called Florence PV LLC to apply for a land use variance. The Florence planning board held a hearing on the request May 22 but suspended it when the volume of residents attending made it difficult for the board to hear all the comments. Another meeting is scheduled for June 26.
Among those who spoke May 22 was Florence resident Joe Johnson, whose home is about 300 yards from the project site.
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