Riverside Solar Project

94-c permitting process

Overview

The Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth and Community Benefit Act (the “Act”) was passed in April 2020 as part of the final state budget. The Act added a new section 94-c to the Executive Law, titled Major Renewable Energy Development ("Section 94-c”, "94-c", or "the 94-c permitting process"), which established a review process with uniform permit standards for New York State renewable energy projects in place of the procedures set forth in Article 10 of the Public Service Law (“Article 10").

Section 94-c established the Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES) within the NYS Department of State to provide a single forum for the environmental review and permitting of proposed major renewable energy facilities. This includes renewable energy systems with a nameplate generating capacity of 25 MW or more, co-located energy storage systems, and electric transmission facilities less than 10 miles in length. The final Section 94-c regulations were issued on March 3, 2021 and can be viewed here.

Article 10 applications that had already received a completeness determination are deemed complete under the new 94-c process, while projects currently undergoing the Article 10 siting process can choose to either remain in Article 10 or opt-in to 94-c. The 94-c regulations issued by ORES include an expedited permitting process to account for matters and issues already presented and resolved in the alternate Article 10 proceedings.

Prior to submitting a 94-c permit application, Applicants are required to consult with the local agencies and stakeholders of the community(ies) in which the proposed project will be located. ORES also requires that state agencies (e.g. NY DEC) are consulted on wetland and stream delineations, threatened and endangered species, and archeological and cultural resources, if appropriate. Agency consultations should take place at the earliest point possible in the Applicant’s process. Following consultations with impacted agencies, 94-c Applicants must hold at least one meeting for community members. The Riverside Solar Virtual Community Meeting was held on March 2, 2021.

Outside of the 94-c public comment period and requirements, Riverside Solar is committed to ongoing stakeholder and community engagement; including maintaining the “Public Involvement Program (PIP) Plan” log, even though it is not a 94-c requirement.

 From the date of its receipt of a permit application, ORES has 60 days to make a completeness determination. After a completeness determination, draft permit conditions will be issued by ORES for public comment. Within the comment period, the host municipalities must submit a statement indicating whether the proposed renewable energy facility complies with applicable local laws. ORES must issue a final decision on the siting permit within one year of the date on which the application is deemed complete. See below for a full diagram of the 94-c process, from pre-application activities through the start of construction.

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On January 9, 2023, Riverside Solar was issued a Siting Permit by ORES, marking one of the final milestones in the 94-c permitting process.

The issuance of this permit signifies ORES' final decision to approve the Riverside Solar 94-c permit application, and authorize AES to develop, design, construct, operate, maintain, and decommission the Riverside Solar project, in accordance with the specifications laid out in the Siting Permit.

• On December 30, 2022, ORES issued the Issues Ruling on the Riverside Solar project, which found no significant issues for adjudication at a public hearing. The ruling thus determined that an adjudicatory hearing would not be necessary, and directed ORES staff to continue processing the Riverside Solar site permit. 

• On December 13, 2022, Riverside Solar and ORES submitted written responses to all comments and statements made during the November 22, 2022, public comment hearing, and provided through the DMM, phone, or email during the full comment period (September 12 - November 28, 2022). 

• On November 22, 2022, at 6:00 PM, the Riverside Solar public comment hearing was held at the Brownville Fire Department. Comments were received from the public, and the public comment period was extended from November 23 to November 28, 2022.

• On November 17, 2022, the public comment hearing was postponed until November 22, 2022, due to inclement weather.

• On September 12, 2022, ORES issued a Draft Permit for the Riverside Solar Project. A public comment hearing was scheduled for November 17, 2022 for members of the public to give comments on the project application and draft permit. Details on the public comment period and public comment hearing, and the commencement of the issues determination procedure, can be found in this Combined Notice.

• On July 14, 2022, Riverside Solar received a Notice of Complete Application from ORES. 

• On May 26, 2022, Riverside Solar filed its Second Supplement Response to the 94-c permit application, in response to the second Notice of Incomplete Application. 

• On April 25, 2022, Riverside Solar received a second Notice of Incomplete Application (NOIA) from ORES.

• On February 23, 2022, Riverside Solar filed its Supplement to the 94-c permit application in response to the Notice of Incomplete Application. Application materials can be found on the DMM and are also available in the 'Project resources' section below.

• On December 17, 2021, Riverside Solar received a Notice of Incomplete Application from ORES. 

• On October 18, 2021, Riverside Solar, LLC filed its 94-c permit application with ORES. The Notice of Application Filing and Availability of Local Agency Account Funding reflects this project milestone. All permit application materials can be found on the New York State Department of Public Service’s Document Matter Manager (DMM) system, under DMM Matter Number 21-00752, and are also available below in the section titled 'Riverside Solar 94-c Application'.

• On February 17, 2021, Riverside Solar filed a letter with the Secretary to the NYS Public Service Commission (PSC) noticing its election to be subject to Executive Law Section 94-c and stating its intent to file a Transfer Application with the Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES). The Riverside Solar materials filed under the Article 10 process can be found here, as Article 10 DMM Matter Number 19-02982.

Join the Riverside Solar master stakeholder list

Joining the Master Stakeholder List maintained by AES enables you to receive mailings of the 94-c required notices. You can join this list by filling out the 'Stay Updated' webform at the bottom of this page, by calling 866-757-7697, or by emailing riversidesolar@aes.com.

Subscribe to the service list

If you would like to monitor the proceedings of the Riverside Solar 94-c application, you can do so without the formal commitment of becoming a party in the proceeding. By subscribing to the service list of a case (Riverside Solar: Matter Number 21-00752), you will receive an e-mail with a direct link to the documents issued by the Public Service Commission PSC), such as orders, notices, and rulings. If you are unable or unwilling to receive electronic notification, you will receive hard copies of Commission-issued documents by regular mail.

If you are a registered user of the NYS Public Service Commission's Document and Matter Management (DMM) System, you may submit your service list subscription by clicking here. Registration saves time and allows you to see and manage all of your service and party list subscriptions.

If you do not wish to register on the PSC's DMM System, you can download the Request for Service List form here. Please follow the instructions on the form.

Request party status

Generally, parties commit to contribute to the development of a complete record in a proceeding by conducting discovery, submitting testimony, briefs, or other formal written comments, and/or participating in evidentiary hearings, procedural conferences and other formal events conducted in the case. (Non-parties participate in PSC proceedings by filing informal comments, such as letters, in contrast to the formal comments filed by parties in response to Commission notices.)

For some PSC proceedings, including rate cases, a person need not be a party to petition for rehearing of the Commission's final decision; however, in some other proceedings, only those who were parties in the case may petition for rehearing. The right to challenge a PSC decision in New York State Court may also be limited to those who were parties to the PSC proceeding.

Under Commission rules, 16 NYCRR 4.3, you must seek permission to intervene as a party from the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ), if one is assigned to the case, or from the Secretary if there is no ALJ assigned. The standard for allowing intervention is whether your participation is likely to contribute to the development of a complete record or is otherwise fair and in the public interest; whether other parties are unfairly prejudiced is also considered.

If you are a registered user of the NYS Public Service Commission's Document and Matter Management (DMM) System, you may submit your request for party status by clicking here. Registration saves time and allows you to see and manage all of your service and party list subscriptions.

If you do not wish to register on the PSC's DMM System, you can download the Request for Party Status form here. Please follow the instructions on the form.

When you submit the request for party status here, you will be provisionally added to the party list, subject to the right of other parties to object and subject to the final determination of the ALJ or Secretary. You will be required to mail your request to anyone on the party list who cannot receive e-mail service.

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 94-c application on October 18, 2021, Riverside Solar, LLC submitted the required local agency account fee of $100,000. 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. The deadline for requesting local agency account funds was 4:30 p.m. EST, November 17, 2021.

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

Further details regarding requests for local agency account funding can be found in the Notice of Application Filing and Availability of Local Agency Account Funding.

If you have questions regarding the intervenor process, please contact the ORES office.

In addition to being viewable on this project website (see 'Riverside Solar 94-c Application', below) and the project Document Matter Master on the DPS website, the Riverside Solar permit application is available for viewing in print at the following locations, during regular operating hours:

• Town of Brownville Town Hall: 16431 Star School House Road, Dexter, NY 13634

• Dexter Free Library: 120 E. Kirby Street, Dexter, NY 13634

• Town of Lyme Town Hall: 12175 NYS Route 12E, Chaumont, NY 13622

• Lyme Free Library: 12165 Main Street, Chaumont, NY 13622

To learn more about the 94-c permitting process, please visit the Office of Renewable Energy Siting website at https://ores.ny.gov/.

• The final 94-c regulations, effective as of March 3, 2021, are available at Chapter XVIII, Title 19 of NYCRR Part 900 (Subparts 900-1 – 900-15) 

• 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 permit applications currently under review (including that of Riverside Solar) and those which have been deemed complete, can be found at https://ores.ny.gov/permit-applications

To submit any questions or comments regarding the 94-c permitting process, reach out to ORES by phone, email, written letter, or via this contact form on the ORES website (https://ores.ny.gov/)

• (518) 473-4590

• 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, N.Y. 12242

Cover Letter & Table of Contents

Exhibit 1. General Requirements

Exhibit 2. Overview and Public Involvement

Exhibit 3. Location of Facilities and Surrounding Land Use

Exhibit 4. Real Property  

Exhibit 5. Design Drawings  

Exhibit 6. Public Health, Safety and Security

Exhibit 7. Noise and Vibration

Exhibit 8. Visual Impacts

Exhibit 9. Cultural Resources 

Exhibit 10. Geology, Seismology, and Soils

Exhibit 11. Terrestrial Ecology 

Exhibit 12. NYS Threatened and Endangered Species

Exhibit 13. Water Resources and Aquatic Ecology  

Exhibit 14. Wetlands

Exhibit 15. Agricultural Resources

Exhibit 16. Effect on Transportation

Exhibit 17. Consistency with Energy Planning Objectives

Exhibit 18. Socioeconomic Effects  

Exhibit 19. Environmental Justice  

Exhibit 20. Effect on Communications  

Exhibit 21. Electric System Effects and Interconnection  

Exhibit 22. Electric and Magnetic Fields  

Exhibit 23. Site Restoration and Decommissioning  

Exhibit 24. Local Laws and Ordinances  

Exhibit 25. Other Permits and Approvals 

Figure 2-1. Facility and Regulatory Boundaries

Figure 3-1. Topographic Maps of Facility Site 

Figure 3-2. Facility Site and Regulatory Boundaries

Figure 3-3. Current Land Use and Major Utility Infrastructure in the Study Area 

Figure 3-4. Tax Parcel Map within 1000 Feet of Facility Site 

Figure 3-5. Zoning Districts and Publicly Known Proposed Land Uses in the Study Area

Figure 3-6. Designated Areas within the Study Area  

Figure 3-7. Aerial Photography of the Study Area 

Figure 4-1. Real Property Map  

Figure 6-1. Emergency Facilities and Hazards in the Study Area 

Figure 7-1. Sound Level Modeling 

Figure 7-4.1. Short Term Sound Modeling 

Figure 7-5.1. Substation Sound Level Modeling 

Figure 7-j.1. Construction Sound Level Modeling 

Figure 10-1. Slope Map 

Figure 10-2. Surficial Geology Map 

Figure 10-3. Bedrock Geology Map 

Figure 10-4. Seismic Hazard Map 

Figure 10-5. NRCS Soil Unit Map 

Figure 11-1. Land Cover on Facility Site 

Figure 11-2. Wildlife Mapping 

Figure 13-1. Water Wells, Groundwater Aquifers and Recharge Areas 

Figure 13-2. Wetlands and Surface Water 

Figure 13-3. Delineated Surface Waters 

Figure 13-4. Facility Site Groundwater Depth 

Figure 14-1. Delineated Wetlands 

Figure 15-1. Agricultural Land in the Study Area 

Figure 15-2. Facility Site Drainage 

Figure 15-3. Agricultural Soils on Facility Site 

Figure 19-1. Potential Environmental Justice Areas 

Appendix 1-1. Certificate of Formation

Appendix 1-2. Riverside Solar, LLC New York State Entity Status

Appendix 2-1. Jinko Solar Tiger Pro Bifacial Module Specification Sheet

Appendix 2-2. Array Technologies DuraTrack® HZ v3 Tracking System Specification Sheet

Appendix 2-3. Virtual Community Meeting PowerPoint

Appendix 2-4. Virtual Community Meeting Questions and Answers

Appendix 2-5. PIP Plan Meeting Log

Appendix 3-1. Town of Lyme Comprehensive Land Use Plan (2010) 

Appendix 3-2. Town of Brownville Comprehensive Plan (1989) 

Appendix 4-1. Survey of Properties Leased by Applicant 

Appendix 4-2. Demonstration of Title or Lease in Facility Site 

Appendix 5-1. Issued for Permit Design Drawings 

Appendix 5-2. Sungrow Inverter Specification Sheet 

Appendix 5-3. Main Power Transformer Specification Sheet 

Appendix 6-1. Safety Response Plan 

Appendix 6-2. Site Security Plan 

Appendix 6-3. Agency Correspondence 

Appendix 7-1. List of Modeled Sound Sources 

Appendix 7-2. List of Sound Receptors 

Appendix 7-3. Ambient Pre-Construction Sound Level Measurement Program 

Appendix 7-4. Project Modeled Sound Levels - Leq (8-hour) 

Appendix 7-5. Collector Substation Modeled Sound Levels - Leq (1 hour) 

Appendix 7-6. Collector Substation Layout 

Appendix 7-7. Manufacturer Sound Level Data Sheets 

Appendix 7-8. Cumulative Analysis 

Appendix 7-9. Glossary of Terms 

Appendix 8-1. Visual Impact Assessment  

Appendix 8-2. Glint and Glare Analysis 

Appendix 9-1. Phase IA Archaeological Survey and Sensitivity Assessment 

Appendix 9-2. New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Project-Related Communication 

Appendix 9-3. Historic Architectural Resources Survey and Effects Report 

Appendix 9-4. Phase IB Archaeological Report 

Appendix 10-1. Geotechnical Report 

Appendix 10-2. Preliminary Karst Field Reconnaissance 

Appendix 10-3. Karst Mitigation Plan 

Appendix 11-1. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service IPaC Consultation 

Appendix 11-2. Invasive Species Management and Control Plan

Appendix 12-1. Wildlife Site Characterization Report 

Appendix 12-2. Grassland Breeding Bird Survey Report 

Appendix 12-3. State-listed Wintering Grassland Raptor Survey Report 

Appendix 12-4. Determination of Occupied Habitat, Incidental Take and Net Conservation 
Benefit 

Appendix 12-5. Net Conservation Benefit Plan 

Appendix 12-6. Occupied Habitat and Estimated Take Response 

Appendix 13-1. FOIL Request 

Appendix 13-2. Private Water Well Survey 

Appendix 13-3. Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan 

Appendix 14-1. Wetland and Stream Delineation Report 

Appendix 14-2. Riverside Functions and Values Assessment 

Appendix 14-3. ORES Draft Surface Waters and Wetlands Jurisdictional Determination 

Appendix 15-1. Real Property Agricultural Assessment Records 

Appendix 15-2. Agricultural Viability Landowner Survey 

Appendix 15-3. Agricultural Plan 

Appendix 15-4. Drainage Remediation Plan 

Appendix 16-1. AASHTO Tables and Sight Distance Diagram 

Appendix 16-2. NYSDOT Average Annual Daily Traffic (AADT) Volumes 

Appendix 16-3. Accident Summary Data 2018-2020 

Appendix 16-4. School Bus Routes and Transit Routes 

Appendix 16-5. Emergency Access Routes 

Appendix 16-6. Posted Bridge and Culvert Data 

Appendix 16-7. Construction Access Routes 

Appendix 16-8. Highway Capacity Software (HCS) Level of Service Output 

Appendix 16-9. Truck Turning Templates 

Appendix 20-1. Proposed Riverside Solar Collection Substation 

Appendix 20-2. Proposed Riverside Solar Point of Interconnection 

Appendix 21-1. Systems Reliability Impact Study 

Appendix 21-2. Riverside Solar Energy Facility 115 kV Transmission & 34.5 kV Collection Design Criteria Document 

Appendix 22-1. EMF Report 

Appendix 23-1. Decommissioning and Restoration Plan 

Appendix 24-1. Town of Lyme Zoning Ordinance and Town of Brownville Zoning Law

Appendix 24-2. Towns of Lyme and Brownville Solar Energy-Related Laws

Appendix 24-3. Town of Lyme Flood Damage Prevention Law 

Appendix 25-1. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Project-Related Correspondence 

On February 23, 2022, Riverside Solar filed its 94-c permit application Supplement in response to the Notice of Incomplete Application (NOIA) issued by ORES on December 17, 2021. The Supplement response and attachments (A-AJ) are included below. 

Riverside Solar Supplement to 94-c Application

Attachment A. Revised Exhibit 2. Public Involvement

Attachment B. Appendix 2-6. Local Agency Meeting PowerPoint

Attachment C. Appendix 2-7. Affidavits for Community Meeting Notification

Attachment D. Revised Figure 3-1. Topographic Maps of Facility Site

Attachment E. Revised Figure 3-3. Current Land Use and Major Utility Infrastructure in the Study Area

Attachment F. Revised VIA

Attachment G. Revised Sheet PV-C.12.03

Attachment H. Revised Appendix 6-1. Safety Response Plan

Attachment I. Exhibit 7 Attachment 1

Attachment J. Exhibit 7 Attachment 2

Attachment K. Revised Exhibit 8. Visual Impacts

Attachment L: Revised Lighting Plan

Attachment M. Appendix 5-2. Lighting Plan Manufacturer’s Cut Sheets

Attachment N. Revised Appendix 9-2. OPRHP Project-Related Communication

Attachment O. Revised Exhibit 9. Cultural Resources

Attachment P. Revised Exhibit 11. Terrestrial Ecology

Attachment Q. Revised Figure 11-1. Land Cover on Facility Site

Attachment R. Table B. Species Potentially Occurring within the Riverside Solar Project Study Area

Attachment S. Revised Appendix 12-5. Net Conservation Benefit Plan

Attachment T. Revised Figure 13-3. Delineated Surface Waters

Attachment U. Updated Design Drawings

Attachment V. Revised Exhibit 13. Water Resources and Aquatic Ecology

Attachment W. Revised Figure 14-1. Delineated Wetlands

Attachment X. Revised Exhibit 14. Wetlands

Attachment Y. Wetland Restoration and Mitigation Plan

Attachment Z. Revised Exhibit 15. Agricultural Resources

Attachment AA. Revised Figure 15-2a. Location of Drainage Features within the Study Area and Figure 15-2b. Facility Site Drainage

Attachment AB. Revised Exhibit 16. Effect on Transportation

Attachment AC. Revised Exhibit 17. Consistency with Energy Planning Objectives

Attachment AD. Revised Exhibit 18. Socioeconomic Effects

Attachment AE. Revised Exhibit 19. Environmental Justice

Attachment AF. Revised Figure 19-1. Potential Environmental Justice Areas

Attachment AG. Revised Appendix 23-1. Decommissioning and Restoration Plan

Attachment AH. Revised Exhibit 24. Local Laws and Ordinances

Attachment AI. Revised Exhibit 25. Other Permits and Approvals

Attachment AJ. USACE Preliminary Jurisdictional Determination (PJD)

On May 26, 2022, Riverside Solar filed its second 94-c permit application Supplement in response to the second Notice of Incomplete Application (NOIA) issued by ORES on April 25, 2022. The Second Supplement Response and attachments (A-D) are included below.

Riverside Solar Second Supplement Response to 94-c Application

Attachment A. Revised Figure 14-1

Attachment B. Revised Exhibit 15

Attachment C. New Figure 15-4

Attachment D. Decommissioning Cost Estimate (Redacted)