BRATTLEBORO — Situated next to a classic red-clapboard barn on land farmed since the early 1800s, a new piece of Vermont history is taking shape: an award-winning community solar array poised to provide energy to both businesses in town and residents.
Contributing companies Soveren Solar, the Vermont Agricultural Business Education Center (VABEC), and Brattleboro Savings & Loan (BS&L) held a “throw-the-switch ceremony” on June 23 for a new 150 kilowatt, 64-rack array at the VABEC complex off Old Guilford Road.
The VABEC array is one of five Vermont Community Solar projects in the state.
Community solar projects are built on one to four acres of open and unobstructed land in Green Mountain Power's service territory for use by individuals and businesses that purchase solar panels to offset electric bills.
The array will make BS&L the first completely solar-powered bank in Vermont through net metering, bank officials say, affecting both its main branch on Main Street and its soon-to-open North End branch on Putney Road.
“Going solar made perfect sense to us,” said BS&L President and CEO Dan Yates in a news release. “Just because we are a business doesn't mean that we don't care about environmental issues. This is our way of helping to reinforce Vermont's commitment to a healthy environment and our commitment to sustainability,”
Yates said the array will reduce BSL's carbon dioxide emissions by an estimated 115 tons per year.
The project has already received national recognition.
In April, the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and Solar Electric Power Association (SEPA) presented the Photovoltaic Project of Distinction Award to the project and its contributing companies.
According to SEPA, the Vermont Community Solar project was recognized in particular for its dedication to local labor and financing, and all entries are judged on a number of criteria, including design, community benefits, and the ability to replicate the model elsewhere.