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For Immediate Release: 01/27/2022 Rory M. Christian, Chair Contact:
James Denn | James.Denn@dps.ny.gov | (518) 474-7080
22012 / 20-F-0043 January 27, 2022
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Virtual Public Statement Hearings Set Regarding Garnet Energy’s Proposed Solar Farm |
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ALBANY — The New York State Board on Electric Generation Siting and the Environment (Siting Board) announced that it will hold two virtual public statement hearings on Thursday, February 3, 2022, concerning an application by Garnet Energy Center, LLC (Garnet Energy) for a Certificate of Environmental Compatibility and Public Need to construct and operate a major solar farm.
The proposed project would have a generating capacity of 200 megawatts (MWs) and would be located on approximately 1,900 acres in the Town of Conquest, Cayuga County. The company’s application consists of a filing made on January 27, 2021, and supplemental filings made on June 28, 2021, September 27, 2021, October 18, 2021, and January 10, 2022. The project would be located on land owned by Garnet Energy or leased from private property owners.
Project components include commercial-scale solar arrays, access roads, electric collection lines, a collection substation, and electrical interconnection facilities. The interconnection facilities will include a 345 kilovolt (kV) switchyard connecting the project to the New York Power Authority’s (NYPA) existing Clay to Pannell 345-kV transmission line adjacent to the project area. Upon the project’s completion, Garnet Energy anticipates that the interconnection facilities will be transferred to and owned and operated by NYPA.
PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that public statement hearings will be held virtually before the assigned Administrative Law Judges, as follows:
Those wishing to comment on any aspect of the project or this proceeding will have the opportunity to make a statement on the record at the virtual public statement hearings. Any person wishing to provide a public statement must pre-register in advance of the hearings.
To register electronically: Participants who would like to provide a statement and will log in to a hearing electronically must register to do so by visiting www.webex.com by 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 2, 2022. From the WebEx homepage, registrants should click “Join” at the top right-hand corner of the screen, enter the appropriate event number listed above, and provide all requested information. On the appropriate date and time of the hearing, please visit www.webex.com to log in to the hearing, click “Join” at the top right-hand corner of the screen, and input the appropriate event number for the hearing. You may need to “refresh” the WebEx home page if the “Join” button does not at first appear. Participants will be asked to “select audio system.” It is recommended that participants opt to have the system “call me” or “call using computer.” The “call me” option will require participants to enter their phone numbers.
To register by phone: Any participant who is not able to log in to a hearing electronically may participate by phone. Call-in participants wishing to provide a statement must register to do so by calling (800) 342-3330 by 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 2, 2022, where they should follow prompts to the appropriate hearing, and provide the following information: first and last name, address, and phone number. On the appropriate date and at the time of a hearing, all call-in users should dial (518) 549-0500 and enter the relevant access code listed above. All participants will be muted upon entry into the hearing. The Administrative Law Judges overseeing the hearings will call on each person who has asked to make a statement. Each public statement hearing will be held open until everyone who has registered to speak has been heard or other reasonable arrangements to submit comments into the record have been made. Time limits may be set for each speaker, as necessary. It is recommended that lengthy comments be submitted in writing and summarized for oral presentation. A verbatim transcript of the hearings will be made for inclusion in the record of this case.
To listen to the hearings: Any person who would like to listen to the hearings without making a statement may access the hearings without pre-registering. The hearings will be live-streamed on the internet and available for viewing on the Department of Public Service YouTube channel on the date and at the times listed above. To access the YouTube channel, visit the Department’s website, www.dps.ny.gov, and click on the YouTube icon at the bottom of the homepage. In addition, any person without internet access may listen to the hearings by phone by calling (518) 549-0500 and entering the applicable access code listed above. Persons with disabilities requiring special accommodations should call the Department of Public Service’s Human Resources Management Office at (518) 474-2520 as soon as possible. TDD users may request a sign language interpreter by placing a call through the New York Relay Service at 711. Individuals with difficulty understanding or reading English are encouraged to call the Department of Public Service at (800) 342-3377 for free language assistance services regarding this notice.
Other Ways to Comment
Those who prefer not to present comments at a public statement hearing may provide comments in several other ways. Internet or Mail: Go to www.dps.ny.gov, click on “Search” and enter “20-F-0043” in the “Search by Case Number” field, then click on “Post Comments” at the top right of the page; or send comments by email to the Secretary to the Siting Board at secretary@dps.ny.gov. Alternatively, comments may be mailed to the Hon. Michelle L. Phillips, Secretary, New York State Board on Electric Generation Siting and the Environment, Three Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York 12223-1350.
Toll-Free Opinion Line: You may call the Siting Board’s Opinion Line at (800) 335-2120. This number is set up to take comments about pending cases from in-state callers, 24-hours a day. These comments are not transcribed verbatim, but a summary is provided to the Siting Board. All submitted comments should refer to “Case 20-F-0043.” All written comments will become part of the record considered by the Siting Board and may be accessed on the Department of Public Service website by searching the case number, as described above, and clicking on the “Public Comments” tab. Although comments will be accepted throughout the pendency of this proceeding, public comments are requested by no later than May 1, 2022, in order to ensure timely consideration by the parties and the Siting Board. |
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