Houston to build nation’s largest urban solar farm on former landfill

Once complete, the 240-acre dump site is expected to produce enough electricity to power up to 10,000 homes

HOUSTON – State regulators have given Houston the go-ahead to build the nation’s largest urban solar farm on a former landfill.

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner announced Friday that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality approved permits for the Sunnyside Solar Farm to be built on the 240-acre site of an old landfill.

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The solar array is expected to produce about 50 megawatts of electricity which is enough to power between 5,000 and 10,000 homes.

Planners said it is estimated that the project will remove about 120 million pounds of carbon from the atmosphere annually.

In January, city leaders said the farm will cost about $70 million to construct with most of the money coming from private investments. About $750,000 in federal funds has also been secured to help with construction.

Construction is expected to begin in late 2022 and the array is expected to be in commercial operation about a year later. 

According to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, about 9% of the power generation available in the state comes from solar.

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