Join This Queens Community Solar Farm To Lower Your Electric Bill

QUEENS, NY -- Rooftop solar panels are widely known to be good for your wallet - and the environment - but for most New Yorkers who rent apartments or live out of sunlight, putting one on your rooftop is a dream that remains in the clouds.

But New Yorkers could soon reap the benefits of solar energy using a community solar farm. Environmental nonprofit Earth Day Initiative is bringing the solar farm to Maspeth, Queens, which would allow residents of all five boroughs to lease their own solar-panel shares in exchange for a discount to their monthly utility bill, John Oppermann, the nonprofit's executive director, told Patch.

"The project will be built on a warehouse rooftop, and basically the way it works is anyone in New York can join in," he said.

Households would become partial owners of the one-megawatt solar panel system by paying a monthly lease for a specific portion of the farm based on how much energy they use. New York City utility companies would then purchase the solar energy generated by the rooftop farm. Households see their profits in monthly credits on their electric bill, Oppermann said.

The amount of that monthly credit varies by household, but will always be larger than your monthly solar farm lease, he said.

"It totally depends on how much electricity you use," Oppermann said.

Oppermann said the community solar farm needs at least 175 members to sign up before it can be constructed. Though Earth Day Initiative isn't building the solar farm, the nonprofit is recruiting households to join on behalf of a solar energy company that wishes to remain anonymous, he said.

"We do a lot to connect people to easy things that they can do to green their lifestyles, and this just seemed like a natural fit to promote," Oppermann said.

The nonprofit is about halfway toward its signup goal for the solar farm, which would be built in a matter of months after that goal is reached. No upfront cost is required to join the project. Instead, the solar energy company pays for their construction up front and leasers repay that cost through their monthly payments, Oppermann said.

Once the solar farm is constructed, he said the nonprofit will likely organize a field trip out to the site for leasers to see it for themselves. Oppermann said the community solar farm would be one of, if not the, first of its kind in New York City.

"This is actually something that is very simple and impactful," Oppermann said. "I think it's a good way to empower people to take it into their own hands to bring solar energy to their communities."

Those looking to snag a share or learn more about the project can visit Earth Day Initiatives online. Space in the community solar farm is limited to 200 households, but if this one is successful, more like it could be close behind, Oppermann said.

"I hope this model really takes off," he said. "Moving to renewable energy has a positive impact for dealing with both climate change and pollution in our air and water.

Lead image via Shutterstock.