PROJECT DESCRIPTION

This large solar array was built on an 18-acre municipal landfill owned and operated by the Bernards Township. Conti was contracted by New Jersey Resources Corporation to provide turnkey engineering, procurement, permitting and construction services for this project.

Conti obtained necessary township planning board approvals, New Jersey Department of Community Affairs permits, county soil conservation permits, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection approvals and township building and electrical permits for the project.

The project was built while an onsite recycling center remained operational, which created logistical challenges as access to the site was limited and there were landfill cap load restrictions. With careful planning, appropriate equipment selection for operations on the landfill and close coordination with the township’s operations team, Conti successfully completed the installation on time and within budget.

Conti installed over 1,000 concrete ballasts of varying sizes to meet the township’s design criteria and support 11,495 Canadian Solar 320 W modules. This project utilized 121 SMA 24 kW string inverters from which AC feeders were fed to the distribution panelboards via carefully designed cable tray system. The system was interconnected with Jersey Central Power & Light’s (JCP&L) and PJM’s 12.47 kV grid network. The entire solar array is protected via a 3,900-foot permanent perimeter fence.

With the final approvals from the owner and Bernards Township, this project was successfully put in operation in September 2016.