Proposed solar farm faces public criticisms

By MARTIN WILBUR

Several people leveled criticisms Tuesday night of environmental-related aspects of the proposed solar farm slated near the Mount Kisco-Bedford border during a scoping session for the project.

The session before the Mount Kisco Planning Board invited public comments based on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement that was submitted by applicant SCS Sarles St., LLC II for a portion of the 25-acre parcel at 180 South Bedford Road. The same board approved a cell tower for another part of the same property in 2023.

The lengthy review was made necessary following the board’s positive declaration for the application in October 2022 under the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act, meaning there is the potential for significant adverse environmental impacts.

Rex Pietrobono of Sarles Street was the first of four speakers and is the resident who lives closest to the property. Despite the applicant’s continual reassurances that there would be no encroachment into the buffer with structures, parking and other features, there are inconsistencies on the documents, he charged.

There is the need for a filtration system associated with the land, but there is also a gravel parking area on the plans supposedly for emergency vehicles, which Pietrobono said is not allowed but could be used as a way to cover for the drainage.

He said that if it is a filtration system on the plans, it is extremely close to his property and threatens trees that shield his land from the cell tower.

“What that would do is if they put that there, it would at least affect the roots of the three prime screening trees that we have on our property to shield us from the cell tower, and this was raised in that cell tower application extensively,” Pietrobono said.

Another resident, John Rhodes, urged the board to consider not only what is covered in the DEIS, but other changes on the property that have taken place over the nearly three years since the positive declaration was issued. For example, about 20% of the trees on the property have died because of the emerald ash borer, a type of wood-eating beetle, said Rhodes, the former chair of the village’s Conservation Advisory Council.

Other issues that should be weighed include the impact of water on the site, community character and quality of life and how the solar array would affect recreational areas, he said.

“The cumulative impacts are really critical because when you add the impact of the cell tower to this proposed thing, there are impacts in every single area,” Rhodes said.

Also commenting was Marsh Sanctuary board member John Stockbridge, who also urged the board to consider the cumulative impacts of the 2.6-megawatt ground-mounted solar array with the cell tower. At last count, there were going to be about 5,400 panels on ground-mounted brackets covering 6.7 acres of the property.

Greater detail on the impacts on wildlife and the planned removal of nearly 500 living trees along with input from the state Historic Preservation Office regarding the amphitheater near the site is critical for the board to weigh, Stockbridge said.

“Community character would benefit from not having it at this location,” he said of the solar farm.

A July 17 letter to the board from Cynthia Garcia, supervisor of the SEQRA Coordination Section for the New York City Department of Environmental Protection, also outlined a few points. Along with the need to carefully evaluate the impact of tree loss on carbon levels and stormwater runoff, Garcia suggested consideration of a pollinator/meadow habitat to partially offset the ecological effect of tree removal and to devise a plan to combat the potential for invasive species.

The DEP wants an analysis of coliform runoff and address any adjacent 100-year flood plains and how the applicant would mitigate potential flooding.

Maryann Tarnok, a resident at the nearby Mount Kisco Chase condominiums, said she was tired of the 3-square-mile village taking on more solar farms than neighboring communities. While applicants continually note how communities must work with the state for New York to reach its renewable energy goals, there is no mandate that Mount Kisco needs to do more, she said.

This would be the third ground- mounted solar installation in the village.

“We’ve done our share. Let some of our neighboring towns with much more land step up to meet New York state’s goals of 70% renewable energy by 2030,” Tarnok said.

The board closed the scoping session and will accept written comments from the public through Aug. 1. Its members will make comments about the project and the public statements at its next meeting Tuesday, Aug. 12.

Board Chair Michael McGuirk said that the comments the board deems relevant will be incorporated into the final scope that is expected to be approved on Aug 12.