SOURCE:
https://www.amityvillerecord.com/articles/lipa-suffolk-county-partner-on-industrial-solar-analysis/
By CAROLYN JAMES - January 22, 2206
The Long Island Power Authority and Suffolk County have launched a new partnership to evaluate large-scale solar energy opportunities across major industrial areas in the county.
One study is to evaluate different business models, including traditional behind-the-meter systems and front-of-the-meter models where rooftop space is leased to developers, and to identify which structures best balance benefits for property owners, businesses, and the broader grid.
The project, announced Jan. 14 by LIPA CEO Carrie Meek Gallagher and Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine, will analyze rooftop solar potential, grid capacity, and permitting processes in key commercial zones. A consultant will be selected through a newly developed Request for Qualifications process.
Target areas include the Long Island Innovation Park at Hauppauge, Route 110 Corridor, Heartland Business Center in Brentwood, MacArthur Business Park, Brookhaven Rail Terminal, and Wyandanch.
The analysis will use geospatial and engineering data. The plan is reach out to municipalities, property owners and industrial associations to identify regulatory barriers.
For property owners and tenants, benefits can include:
•Lower electricity costs if the solar serves on-site load behind the meter.
•Lease revenue if a property owner leases rooftop space to a solar developer.
•Increased property value and marketability from hosting clean energy infrastructure.
•Potential participation in programs that recognize the system value of solar in constrained areas.
For the electric system and customers more broadly:
•Reduced peak demand and stress on local infrastructure.
•Improved reliability in constrained or high-load areas.
•Potential long-term cost avoidance by deferring or reducing the need for grid upgrades.
“We have the largest industrial parks east of the Mississippi; the second largest in the United States,” Romaine said as he discussed the benefit of solar energy at a recent Long Island Association breakfast. “That’s a lot of flat rooftops that can be used to collect solar energy, so we want to provide incentives.”
He added that the collaboration with LIPA “will help unlock the potential of our industrial areas to support clean energy, reduce business costs, and create a more resilient energy future.”
The Request for Proposals was issued January 16 with final proposals due February 6. A LIPA spokesman said the award is expected to be made around mid March.
Babylon Town Supervisor Richard Schaffer said he has spoken to the county and LIPA about the plan which, would include businesses in Wyandanch, primarily along Wyandanch Avenue between Straight Path and Belmont Avenue.
“Solar residents have been very happy with the success of having solar panels on their homes and it has not only saved them money but also provided additional energy for the grid,” said Schaffer. “I believe our local businesses would also save money with these solar leases and also help provide the additional energy we need here on Long Island. now and into the future.”
Environmental and clean energy groups praised the effort.
“Industrial rooftops are among New York’s most underused solar opportunities,” said Noah Ginsburg of NYSEIA. Julie Tighe of the New York League of Conservation Voters called it a “scalable, cost-effective model” for development. Adrienne Esposito of Citizens Campaign for the Environment said the effort could help reduce reliance on aging power plants.
Larger issue, supe says, is what comes after the closure
On Jan. 8, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, DEC, extended the deadline for completion of the Corrective Measures Assessment period and Report submission to ensure a complete assessment and adequate public engagement for the Town of Brookhaven’s landfill closure.
According to the DEC, the town must host a public meeting and conclude their assessment by April 15, 2026, and submit the Corrective Measures Assessment Report by May 1, 2026, a three-month extension from previous requirements.
A federal judge granted Empire Offshore Wind a preliminary injunction as it legally challenged the U.S. Department of the Interior’s order directing a suspension of five offshore wind projects along the East Coast, allowing the company to resume construction as local laborers called out against the freeze.
The White House said in December 2025 that it would halt leases for five wind farms under construction off the East Coast, including two off the coast of Long Island, citing national security concerns.
New York state is taking legal action against the Trump administration for halting construction of five offshore wind farms. Friday, Gov. Kathy Hochul joined hundreds of workers whose livelihoods depend on projects already under construction.
Hochul on administration's explanation for pause: "It is BS"
NEW YORK (PIX11) – Developers of wind projects along the East Coast, two of them on Long Island, are escalating their battle against the trump administration’s freeze on further development.
They claim the projects pose a threat to national security. Governor Kathy Hochul joined union members in Hauppauge to lash out at Washington.
The Trump administration on Monday renewed their campaign against two offshore wind projects in New York waters.
Citing unspecified national security risks, the U.S. Department of the Interior “paused” the leases for the Empire Wind and Sunrise Wind projects, both already under construction, plus three additional major offshore wind projects in other states.
Suffolk County Legislator Steven Englebright (D-Setauket) invited Citizens Campaign for the Environment co-founder Adrienne Esposito and CCE board and staff members to the Suffolk County Legislature’s Nov. 25th General Meeting to honor them for 40 years of advocacy. Presiding Officer Kevin McCaffrey (R-Lindenhurst) joined Englebright at the podium, where the CCE team received a proclamation along with flowers and balloons.
Experts warn New York could face energy shortages as early as 2027.
Offshore wind offers clean, reliable power and price stability.
South Fork Wind Farm already powers 70,000 Long Island homes.
Upgraded transmission and new wind projects are urgently needed.
This fall, New Yorkers across the state showed up and spoke up to demand clean, affordable, reliable, safe and healthy energy infrastructure during the state’s energy plan hearings. Tragically, the Trump administration is wreaking havoc on our nation’s clean energy progress, making it more important than ever for New York to step up and lead the way to the sustainable, resilient system we need. Right now, we’re not on track.
On Sept. 29, a mix of grassroots organizers, student activists, utility workers, elected officials, and environmental professionals voiced varying priorities at the New York State draft energy plan hearing at Stony Brook University. The university saw multiple outdoor rallies in addition to 2 ½ hours of public comments on the 15-year plan, with concerns covering jobs, affordability, environmental safety, and more.
More than 200 community members gathered at Stony Brook University’s Center of Excellence in Wireless and Information Technology (CEWIT) for the second annual Energy & Infrastructure Open House and Union Apprenticeship Awareness Day.
WASHINGTON — Halfway through his first year back in office, President Donald Trump has the green light from the Republican-majority Congress to move ahead on major parts of his domestic agenda.
The sprawling budget bill Congress passed this week, which Trump signed into law at a July Fourth White House ceremony, will touch Long Island in a variety of ways — from the economy to the environment, from health care access to immigration enforcement — and will be at the center of next year’s midterm elections, said Lawrence Levy, executive dean of Hofstra University’s National Center for Suburban Studies.
Environmentalists, labor leaders, government officials and solar energy companies all welcomed the appointment of Carrie Meek Gallagher to lead the Long Island Power Authority.
It would probably be difficult to imagine someone with a background better suited to leading LIPA than Gallagher, who takes the helm on July 7. She has more than 25 years of experience in public service, energy regulation and environmental policy — including time monitoring LIPA.
The MTA has requested and received another extension to complete its $10 purchase of a 40-acre Port Jefferson Station property for a future LIRR train station, Suffolk County officials said Tuesday.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority had faced a June 30 deadline to close on the deal after two previous deadlines had passed in June and December last year.
As the Democrats on the Ways and Means Committee reported, the “GOP Tax Scam” cuts nearly $1 trillion from the health care system – effectively chipping away if not repealing entirely the Affordable Care Act - eliminating health coverage for at least 13.7 million Americans including 1.5 million New Yorkers.
LONG BEACH, NY — The Empire Wind 1 offshore wind project will go forward off the southern coast of Long Beach and Jones Beach.
“I am grateful to President Trump and Secretary Burgum for lifting the stop-work order on Empire Wind 1 which will allow this transformative clean energy project to move forward as planned," said Doreen Harris, President and CEO of New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA).
The administration reversed course and will allow the Empire Wind project to proceed after lobbying by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Norwegian energy firm Equinor.
The Trump administration lifted the stop-work order on a major wind farm off the coast of New York on Monday, according to a statement by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D), following direct appeals she made to the president.
