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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03 - Operations & Maintenance Plan MUD 70345-050v4 S Main 1 70345-050v4 Page 1 of 5 Operations & Maintenance Plan October 24, 2024 Last revised: February 15, 2024 South Main Street Project #1 SBL: 26.-1-25.22 5MW Solar Facility Prepared for: Town of Groton Tompkins County, New York Prepared by: NY Groton I (South Main Street), LLC P.O. Box 384 Callicoon NY, 12783 2 Content 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................................ 3 2. General Requirements of the O&M Plan ................................................................................................... 3 3. Solar Facility (Components) Maintenance ................................................................................................. 3 3.1 Scheduled Service Visits: Preventative Maintenance and Inspections ................................................... 3 3.2 Unscheduled Service Visits: Corrective Maintenance and Repairs ......................................................... 4 3.3 Scope of Work ........................................................................................................................................... 4 3.4 Preventative and Corrective Maintenance Plan ....................................................................................... 4 4. General Project Site Maintenance .............................................................................................................. 5 5. Summary ..................................................................................................................................................... 5 3 1. Introduction NY Groton I (South Main Street), LLC (“Project Owner”) proposes to build a photovoltaic (PV) solar facility (“Solar Facility”) at South Main Street in the Town of Groton (“Town”) under New York State’s Community Solar initiative. The Solar Facility is planned to have a total nameplate capacity of approximately 5 megawatts alternating current (MWac), to be constructed on private land (“Project Site”) leased by the Project Owner from the property owner. This Operations and Maintenance Plan (“O&M Plan”) is being submitted to the Town as part of the the Town of Groton Local Law #1 of 2024 Section 367 Energy Production (“Solar Law”). The Solar Facility is considered a Large-Scale Solar Installation as set forth in the Solar Law. Prior to commercial operation, if the Project Owner has the capability to provide the services required by this O&M Plan, the Project Owner shall perform the services as herein provided. If the Project Owner does not possess the capability to provide operations and maintenance (“O&M”) services, the Project Owner will enter an Operation and Maintenance Contract (“O&M Contract”) with an operations and maintenance provider(s) (“O&M Contractor”), the scope of which shall include essential works and services needed for the (a) proper operation and maintenance of the Solar Facility and (b) maintenance of the Project Site. Following is a general overview of the O&M Plan. 2. General Requirements of the O&M Plan • All scheduled Solar Facility maintenance and all landscaping and vegetation maintenance will occur during normal business hours (8:00 A.M. and 7:00 P.M. Eastern Time). • Commercially reasonable efforts will be used to ensure minimal disturbance when performing any maintenance work of the Solar Facility or Project Site. • Herbicides will not be used to manage vegetation. In the event the use of herbicides becomes necessary, approval from the Town’s Code Official shall be obtained before any application of herbicides. • In the event there is any damage to ground cover, vegetation or vegetative screening due to maintenance activities (other than caused by normal maintenance activities), the affected areas and vegetation will be repaired. • Corrective maintenance of the Solar Facility may require specialists outside the abilities and responsibility of the Project Owner or O&M Contractor. 3. Solar Facility (Components) Maintenance 3.1 Scheduled Service Visits: Preventative Maintenance and Inspections • Semi-Annual interim maintenance visit. • Annual full maintenance visit. • Annual system testing and verification of data acquisition systems. • Module cleaning once a year, if required. • Periodic Solar Facility field inspection: including electrical and mechanical equipment. • Data acquisition system maintenance as needed. • Inverter cleaning and servicing to ensure proper operation. Scheduled maintenance and testing as required to maintain manufacturer’s warranties. • Scheduled maintenance and testing required to maintain all manufacturers’ warranties on Solar Facility components. 4 3.2 Unscheduled Service Visits: Corrective Maintenance and Repairs Unscheduled maintenance visits will generally occur during “Emergency Situations” that might endanger the health and/or safety of surrounding area or “Major Disruptions” to the Solar Facility that degrades electricity generation that does not create an Emergency Situation, such as failure of Solar Facility components, vandalism, or fallen trees. In the event of an Emergency Situation, the Project Owner or O&M Contractor will contact the appropriate personnel (fire department, police department) to inform them of the emergency. The Project Owner or O&M Contractor will then dispatch appropriate personnel to the Project Site as soon as possible. In the event of a Major Disruption to the Solar Facility, the Project Owner or O&M Contractor will schedule a corrective maintenance visit as soon as possible with all reasonable effort to schedule any such maintenance activities between 8:00 A.M and 7:00 P.M. 3.3 Scope of Work The scope of work for the proper O&M of the Solar Facility shall generally include at least, but not limited to, the following items: • Compliance with the Local, State and Federal Rules, Codes, Regulations and Laws regarding the health and safety of any operation and maintenance works. • Performance of a preventive and corrective maintenance plan. • Control and monitoring of the Solar Facility 24/365, including, alarms and system failures, and coordination with the local fire department and law enforcement. • Maintenance and operat ion all the infrastructures, equipment and facilities related to the Solar Facility required for the proper operation. • Administration and management of supplier's guarantees and warranties. • Management of the records involved with third party site visits such as insurance and governmental agencies. • Performing annual field tests and addressing any potential failures that are identified by such testing. • Management of spare parts. 3.4 Preventative and Corrective Maintenance Plan Preventive and corrective maintenance programs to maintain and operate the Solar Facility in the proper way shall include: • Inspecting, testing and cleaning equipment, including a periodically cleaning of the modules, if necessary. • Replacing all spare parts, supplies and consumables necessary for performance of the Solar Facility according to the manufacturer's user manual. • Performing annual field tests and addressing any potential failures that are identified by such testing. • Complying with all permits and maintaining all in effect permits required for operation and maintenance of the Solar Facility. • Maintaining a monthly report including at least the following information: energy estimate, energy production, % of availability, weather station information, preventive maintenance services performed, corrective maintenance services performed including spare parts and consumables used. The m onthly report should also include a detailed description of: 1. Any material failure covered by any warranties, action plan and expected timeframe to cover the 5 incident. 2. Any violation of any applicable law, applicable permit or prudent industry practice, including environmental laws, rules, or regulations enforced by governmental agencies. 3. Any adverse events or conditions that may affect normal Solar Facility operation. 4. Record of all tests and reviews performed to maintain systems in compliance with the manufacturer user manual, including name of company involved and nature of service. 4. General Project Site Maintenance Frequency of site visits shall be determined based on season (more in summer, less in winter), but no less than quarterly to monitor vegetation. Any required corrective actions will be taken as soon as practical or warranted by the circumstances. • Visually inspect and report on all fencing for signs of damage, intrusion, and overgrowth of vegetation. • Inspect signage to ensure all originally installed signs are present and legible. • Maintenance of access road, including snow removal as needed. • Vegetation may need to be trimmed or cut back to avoid shading of the modules. Shading inspections will be done semi-annually and trimming will occur as needed. This includes ground cover, existing vegetation, and screening vegetation. Ground cover will be either mowed, as needed, or sheep may be utilized to graze the array area. • Adherence to any Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan practices, if any. 5. Summary This O&M Plan has been submitted as part of the application for a Solar Energy Permit, including special use permit and site plan review, for a Large-Scale Solar Installation as set forth in the Solar Law. This O&M Plan is qualified in its entirety by the Project Owner’s final application and site plan approved by the Town during the Town review process.