A former coal ash disposal site in West Virginia is the site of a huge solar farm being constructed to boost the state’s clean energy output.
The Marlowe solar installation will produce up to 5.75 megawatts of a planned eventual total of 200, Power Engineering reported. It will be completed next year.
Mon Power and Potomac Edison have begun construction with made-in-America solar panels, steel, and electrical equipment. The work is being done by local union members, according to the outlet.
The 36-acre site off Interstate 81 will be the third utility-scale solar facility the companies have built in the Mountain State. The other two, in Maidsville and Rivesville, produce 24.4 MW combined after being completed this year, and another pair will bump that power production to 50 MW, all per Power Engineering. Those farms will be located in Davis and Weirton.
The Marlowe installation required the removal of three million tons of ash from the former coal ash disposal site. The five sites will issue 87,000 solar credits, one for each megawatt-hour produced, which can be purchased by residential, commercial, and institutional customers. The cost adds four cents per kilowatt-hour to normal rates, according to Power Engineering.
Buyers already include the National Energy Technology Laboratory and the small town of Harpers Ferry.
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The transition in coal country from dirty energy sources to clean, renewable ones is vital to help slow the rapid warming of our planet, which is driven by the pollution that comes from burning coal, gas, and oil. When those energy sources are replaced with solar, wind, hydro, and more, we reduce the amount of heat-trapping gases in the atmosphere.
This benefits our physical and mental health, the environment, and our wallets. Cutting pollution means breathing easier and a lesser risk of natural disasters, and it often costs less. You can also save money by changing how you use your washer and dryer or switching to an induction stovetop.
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