| Advertisement |
Feb. 9 (UPI) -- Renewable energy developer Ameresco said Thursday it would work with officials in Illinois to develop a 5-megawatt solar power facility at an abandoned landfill, which could bring $1 million in revenue. Ameresco will work with officials in Alton, just north of St. Louis, to build the solar facility on a closed municipal landfill.
Advertisement
Construction is to begin in a few short months, and its first full year of operation, anticipated in 2024, should generate some 10,000 megawatt hours of electricity and help offset area greenhouse gas emissions, the developer said.
"Though global warming is a worldwide problem, this project will benefit our city through local job creation and increased property tax revenue, while also reducing greenhouse gas emissions," said Alton Mayor David Goins.
Illinois Gov. Jay "J.B." Pritzker signed an executive order in 2019 affirming that state policies are consistent with the Paris climate accord, which outlines goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 25% from a 2005 baseline by 2025.
Overall emissions of carbon dioxide, a potent greenhouse gas, declined by 15% between 2005 and 2016, the last full year for which the state published data.
About 30% of the total decline was attributed to the electric power sector, with transportation now the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in Illinois.
The federal government expects the share of renewable resources on the grid will increase from 22% in 2022 to 26% in 2024, with most of that coming from utility-scale solar power.
The International Energy Agency, meanwhile, said the global power sector is at a "tipping point" in terms of greenhouse gas emissions because of the increase in usage of wind, solar and nuclear power.
