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Watershed Solar Development will specialize in capped landfill solar projects

By Billy Ludt | November 25, 2019

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Landfill capping and erosion reduction specialists Watershed Geo, Watershed Solar and ISM Solar have formed a solar development company focused on turning capped brownfields into solar systems.

Watershed Solar Development will provide landfill and brownfield solar energy solutions integrated with ClosureTurf, a patented engineered geosynthetic turf closure system owned by Watershed Geo.

“After many years of geotechnical evaluation, wind tunnel testing and long-term field demonstrations performed in extreme weather conditions, we are thrilled with this partnership that pulls together industry expertise to execute on this unprecedented way to convert land from financial liabilities to long-term reliable assets,” said Mike Ayers, CEO of Watershed Geo.

ClosureTurf, which has recently been adopted by the United States EPA to close Superfund sites, has solved long-plaguing issues to conventional landfill and brownfield closure designs. It is also the ideal foundation for solar energy systems, as it eliminates vegetative maintenance, erosion, and associated risks and costs.

ClosureTurf is installed at over 80 sites totaling approximately 2,000 acres, safely and effectively reducing the environmental impact of landfills and brownfields across the U.S. Several of these capped sites have endured hurricanes, tropical storms and snowstorms.

Watershed Solar Development is licensed and authorized nationwide by Watershed Geo to develop and install solar energy systems on ClosureTurf or PowerCap, a patent-pending solar technology, marketed and supported by Watershed Geosynthetics, that optimizes the solar design and maximizes project economics in the following ways:

  • Provides a geotechnically engineered and tested, highly stabilized solar energy system
  • Features a direct attachment method to ClosureTurf with no penetrations
  • Achieves industry-best power density per unit area and for the entire site
  • Enables installation on landfill slopes up to 2:1
  • Includes a 40-year performance warranty
  • Makes ClosureTurf eligible for the Federal Investment Tax Credit in some instances

Watershed Solar Development has a pipeline of municipal solid waste, industrial landfill and brownfield projects approaching 125 MW in total. Its first project began development in late 2019 at the 22-acre Cranston, Rhode Island, Sanitary Landfill. The 3.5-MW community solar project will provide electric bill savings to Rhode Island homeowners.

“After many years of geotechnical evaluation, wind tunnel testing and long-term field demonstrations performed in extreme weather conditions, we are thrilled with this partnership that pulls together industry expertise to execute on this unprecedented way to convert land from financial liabilities to long-term reliable assets,” says Mike Ayers, CEO of Watershed Geo.

“We have seen firsthand how ClosureTurf provides economic and environmental value to customers and communities,” said Greg Lucini CEO of ISM Solar Development. “We aim to build on that by delivering additional revenue, savings and clean energy. Our approach is to leverage ClosureTurf’s unique characteristics to improve the closure and solar bottom line for the benefit of all stakeholders.”

News item from Watershed Geo & Watershed Solar

About The Author

Billy Ludt

Billy Ludt is senior editor of Solar Power World and currently covers topics on mounting, installation and business issues.

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