Join C3 in Supporting the Woodridge Solar Project!
Solar power is a key part of a low-carbon future for the planet and for our Virginia communities. In the community of Woodridge, in Albemarle County, a solar project has been proposed that would generate nearly 400 GWh/year of electricity, enough to power some 30,000 homes, according to C3’s calculations.
Our team developed a comprehensive report that assesses the project using our Solar Climate Justice Scorecard, which focuses on the following main climate justice areas: (i) Procedural Justice, (ii) Distributional Justice, (iii) Restorative Justice, and (iv) Other Socio-Economic and Environmental Factors. The full methodology for the Solar Climate Justice Scorecard is now available here.
According to C3’s analysis, the proposed Woodridge Solar project scored exceptionally well in the "Other Socio-Economic Environmental Factors" area, as the Hexagon team did an effective job at crafting a management plan that minimized environmental damage.
Based on our analysis, C3 strongly supports this proposed project. We are excited to recommend that Albemarle County grant the solar developer Hexagon Energy a special-use permit to add solar to the Woodridge site.
While C3’s report is in its final steps, to learn more about the project, we highly recommend checking out Livable Cville’s “Woodridge Solar: Questions And Answers”.
A Quick Peek/Preview on C3’s Key Report Findings
Climate Justice: The Woodridge project scored highly on climate justice, according to C3’s analysis, which aggregated the best practices in procedural, distributional, and restorative justice.
Hexagon surpassed Albemarle County’s required community engagement, and feedback elicited from neighbors through this process was ultimately included in the proposed project design. However, community outreach could have been improved by including more language offerings and compensation for community members' participation/input.
Hexagon’s project design scored extremely high on distributional justice (how evenly environmental harms and benefits are felt throughout a community), especially to the extent that they are able to deliver on goals for local employment.
Climate Change Mitigation: The project is expected to reduce carbon emissions and have a net climate change mitigating effect.
We estimate that in the first year of operations, the clean energy directly created from the project will result in roughly 126,676 US tons of GHG emissions mitigated.
The proximity to existing transmission lines, in the case of the Woodridge site, makes the location of this site a strategic choice. Typically, new transmission lines -wires that carry high-voltage energy from the source of energy generation to the grid- need to be built to connect the new solar farms with the grid, and this can result in significant deforestation. We estimate that for every mile of a new transmission line not constructed, the project could prevent the cutting down of 5,460 to 14,520 trees.
How can you support the project?
After our analysis, C3 is excited by the climate mitigation potential of this project as well as the thoughtful attention paid to protecting the environment and informing the public of the site. We urge community members and County Supervisors to support the project for the benefit of our local community and global climate health.
Sign our petition to urge the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors to approve the project!
Note: This blog was last updated January 26, 2023.