A New York City power company received conditional approval March 4 to construct a community solar farm in Edgecomb. The planning board voted unanimously to require Syncarpha Solar to provide more information on plans for decommissioning the project prior to receiving a building permit.

Syncarpha has dozens of community solar projects nationwide and the Edgecomb project would be one of three planned for Maine in 2021. Syncarpha has named its local proposal the Edgecomb Solar Project LLC. The solar array would produce just under five megawatts of electricity on a parcel of land less than 20 acres along U.S. Route 1 near the Newcastle line. Syncarpha’s proposal allows for people who want green electricity, but don’t want to attach solar panels to their homes. Edgecomb Solar’s electricity would be sold to a limited number of customers at a discount.

On Feb. 18, the planning board tabled Syncarpha’s application because it lacked a specific plan for decommissioning the solar panels and establishing a performance bond to cover removal costs. On March 4, Syncarpha still lacked specific details, but reached an understanding to provide those details prior to receiving full approval. Board member Jack French also posed concerns about approving the project without a solar municipal ordinance. The Ordinance Review Committee is working on one, but there was no guarantee it would be ready for the May town meeting. Even if an ordinance was ready for voter approval, Syncarpha officials did not want to wait until May. “We were hoping for a decision, tonight,” Project Manager Mike Atkinson said. “Two weeks ago, all you wanted was a decommissioning plan, nothing was said about an ordinance.” Chairman Barry Hathorne agreed, and told board members an application could not be denied based on a lack of a municipal ordinance.

In the meantime, Syncarpha will provide decommissioning details prior to receiving a building permit and will assist the ORC in writing a municipal solar ordinance. Syncarpha selected Edgecomb due to its proximity to a Central Maine Power substation. The project would provide electricity to the local grid and community members would buy their electricity from Syncarpha at a 15% discount, according Atkinson. Edgecomb residents would have priority to buy the solar power, but Atkinson said any CMP customer could participate.

The board meets next at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 18.