AMHERST — A long controversial project to put solar panels on top of the older of the two capped landfills on Belchertown Road is being abandoned out of concern that it might impact the habitat of the endangered grasshopper sparrow.
Amherst officials recently announced that they are terminating an agreement with SunEdison, LLC for installation and operation of a 2.4-megawatt photovoltaic system on the site. That power-purchase agreement was first announced in December.
According to a statement released by the town, the state Division of Fisheries and Wildlife’s Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program and the state Department of Environmental Protection concluded that construction on the older landfill, located on the south side of Belchertown Road, would result in a so-called “take” of the rare and endangered grasshopper sparrow, which is listed and protected under the Massachusetts Endangered Species Act.
In the statement, Peter Hechenbleikner, interim town manager, said Amherst is still moving forward with SunEdison to build a 3.7-megawatt solar array on the newer capped landfill.
“The town has remained in communication with SunEdison regarding construction on the ‘new’ landfill location,” Hechenbleikner said. “Although this site is also listed as endangered species habitat for the grasshopper sparrow, both state agencies have indicated that utilizing the ‘old’ landfill site as mitigation for solar construction on the ‘new’ landfill is not out of the question.”
A solar project for the older landfill was first announced in 2011 and followed by a lawsuit in Hampshire Superior Court that was dismissed without prejudice in March 2015.
That proposal to cover more than 60 percent of the 53 acres at the former landfill with solar panels had neighbors contend the town was bound by an agreement that the landfill site could never be used for anything other than recreation.
This stipulation was explicitly overridden in February 2012, when the state Legislature passed a bill allowing all capped municipal landfills to serve as sites for solar projects.
Plaintiffs then amended the lawsuit in April 2012, raising other issues not affected by the legislation. Those included possible contamination of properties in the nearby Amherst Woods neighborhoods and potential impacts on the habitat of the grasshopper sparrow.
Hechenbleikner disputed that construction of a solar energy facility would pose threats to the drinking water supply.
“The town has drilled numerous test wells around that site and is required to report to DEP on the test results periodically,” Hechenbleikner said. “The town has also evaluated these test results with the Water Supply Quality Committee, and has found no reason to be concerned about water quality related to the former landfill.”
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.