Groton celebrates completion of three solar farms
Groton — Groton officials on Thursday celebrated the construction of three solar farms in Groton, which were all completed in the last few months.
They gathered at Polaris Park, located off Route 12 across from Gungywamp Road. With 15,390 panels, it's the largest of the three solar arrays; Trident Park has 4,392 while Pelican Park has 1,944.
The arrays are located on U.S. Navy land near the submarine base.
"Energy reduction and conservation are critical to our base's future, our Navy's future, and our nation's future," said Capt. Paul Whitescarver of the sub base. "We all need to work together to make a difference. Today highlights that."
Creation of the solar farms was a public-private partnership between the U.S. Naval Submarine Base, Groton Utilities, Balfour Beatty Communities, the City of Groton, the Town of Groton, the Connecticut Municipal Electric Energy Cooperative and Brightfields.
Whitescarver said this was a natural extension of the project last year to place solar panels on 800 Balfour Beatty Communities buildings.
The three solar parks are expected to produce more than 8 million kilowatt hours every year and serve 972 homes with 100 percent of their energy. They will produce roughly 2 percent of Connecticut Municipal Electric Energy Cooperative members' electricity.
According to Groton Utilities, the three community solar gardens collectively eliminate 5,471 tons of carbon emissions per year.
Ron Gaudet, director of utilities for Groton Utilities, explained that the Polaris Park site used to be Navy housing, but it was demolished when it became derelict. He lamented that Google Maps still shows the site as an open field, not covered in solar panels.
According to a news release from Groton Utilities, the electric storage capacity at Polaris Park "provides critical resiliency" during power outages, extending electric supply to 100 homes for a 24-hour period.
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