SOLAR POWER IN NEW YORK

Effective April 20, 2024, the Renewable Action through Project Interconnection and Deployment (RAPID) Act (L 2024, ch 58, part O) repealed Executive Law § 94-c and enacted a new Public Service Law article VIII entitled “Siting of Renewable Energy and Electric Transmission” (Article VIII). The RAPID Act consolidates the environmental review, permitting, and siting of major renewable energy facilities and major electric transmission facilities under the purview of the Office of Renewable Energy Siting and Electric Transmission (Office or ORES).

The RAPID Act also transferred ORES’ regulations at 19 NYCRR part 900 (Part 900) to 16 NYCRR chapter XI, and continued Part 900 in full force and effect subject to conforming changes, such as the substitution of numbering, names, titles, citations, and other non-substantive changes to be filed with the Secretary of State. Effective July 17, 2024, the conforming changes were filed with the Secretary of State as a new 16 NYCRR part 1100 (Part 1100).

The text of the new Part 1100 currently in effect may be accessed at ORES Regulatory Documents.

The Existing Facility consists of 67 wind turbines, each with 1.5 megawatts (MW) of capacity. The Repowered Facility will reduce the total number of wind turbines at the Existing Facility by at least 33 and will install up to 28 wind turbines that will generate up to approximately 110.5 MW of electrical energy. Each new turbine will have a generating capacity three to four times greater than the Existing Facility turbines. The Repowered Facility will continue to safely generate enough clean, renewable electricity to power approximately 19,000 average homes in the United Sates and reduce carbon emissions by approximately 116,000 tons annually. The Repowered Facility will use the Existing Facility’s interconnection to the New York power grid via the existing switchyard station in the Town of Eagle, tapping into National Grid’s Freedom Substation. The switchyard station transforms the power generated by the wind turbines to match the specification of the interconnection with the 
electrical grid. The Repowered Facility will include installation of new 34.5 kV collection lines that collect power from the inverters in each wind turbine and will use the Existing Facility overhead collection lines to the maximum extent practical. 

Through careful planning and design, the Applicant has demonstrated that potential environmental and health impacts of the construction of the facility will be avoided or minimized to the maximum extent practicable. The list of potential impacts includes Streams and Wetlands, Agricultural Resources, Cultural Resources, Terrestrial Resources, Threatned and Endengared Species and Visual Resources. Visit the project DMM for more details about impacts and mitigation. Link to the DMM can be found here

Join the Bliss Wind stakeholder list.

Joining the Stakeholder List enables you to receive mailings of the Article VIII required notices.

You can join this list by:

• Fill out the 'Contact Us’ webform at the bottom of this page.
• Call 866-757-7697.
• Emailing blisswind@aes.com.
• Requesting Party Status

To learn more about the Article VIII permitting process, please visit the Office of Renewable Energy Siting website at https://ores.ny.gov/.

• The final Article VIII regulations are available at Chapter XI, Title 16 of NYCRR Part 1100 (Subparts 1100-1 - 1100-15)
• Resources related to the PSC Document Matter Master system, local agency account funds, and regulatory documents can be viewed on the ORES website at https://ores.ny.gov/resources
• Information on the Article VIII permit applications currently under review and those which have been deemed complete, can be found at https://ores.ny.gov/permit-applications

The application, once filed, can be examined during normal business hours at the Office of Renewable Energy Siting and Electric Transmission, as well as at the local libraries served in accordance with section 1100-1.6(a)(6) of this Part.
The addresses of these locations are:

• Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES) c/o: OGS Mailroom Empire State Plaza 240 State Street P-1 South, J Dock Albany, N.Y. 12242Local library 1 address.
• Eagle Free Library: 3413 School St, Bliss, NY 14024.
• Gainesville Public Library, 10 Church Street, Silver Springs, NY 14550-0321

Intervenor funding is money that Applicants make available to qualified, locally affected parties and municipalities to offset certain expenses they incur in participating in the state permitting process. These funds are meant to encourage early and effective public involvement in project development and permitting.
 

• With the filing of its Article VIII permit application, Bliss Wind will submit the required local agency account fee. These funds can be sought by local community intervenors and host towns. 75% of funds are reserved for municipalities.
• Any local agency or potential community intervenor seeking funding must submit a request for initial funding within 30 days of the date of application filing.
• Additional details regarding requests for local agency account funding will be provided once the Bliss Wind Article VIII has been submitted to ORES.
  Requests for local agency account funds can be made via:
• The ORES Request for Local Agency Account Funding form available in the Resources section of the ORES website
• Or by email to general@ores.ny.gov
• Or by mail to Attention: Request for Local Agency Account Funding Office of Renewable Energy Siting Empire State Plaza 240 State Street P-1 South, J Dock Albany, NY 12242
  If you have questions regarding the intervenor process, please contact the ORES office.

To submit any questions or comments regarding the Article VIII permitting process, reach out to ORES by phone, email or written letter.
 

• Phone: (518) 473-4590
• Email: general@ores.ny.gov
• Mailing information (letters and envelopes):
Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES)
c/o OGS Mailroom Empire State Plaza
240 State Street P-1 South, J Dock
Albany, NY 12242