In 2010, a year after its establishment in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Black River Farms used funding from the Pennsylvania Sunshine Solar Program to install a 200-kilowatt ground-mounted solar field. This program, funded by the state legislature, allocated $100 million to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection program to help small businesses, like Black River Farms, and homeowners install solar photovoltaic and solar thermal projects and energy storage systems. This opportunity, Black River Farms co-founder Andrew Warner recalled, “was very helpful.”
Family-owned and operated Black River Farms uses the power from solar arrays to produce all of its wine from fourteen varieties of grapes. As a result of the project, the business has a negative carbon footprint, with the project offsetting 200% of its electricity use every year.
“We know that with all the carbon offsets that we’ve brought to this planet by doing this, it’s equivalent to about 5300 trees. So we know we’ve done a lot of good,” Warner said.
Photo Courtesy Black River Farms
In March, PennEnvironment organized an event at Black River Farm, where Pennsylvania officials and residents visited the solar project. The environmental nonprofit’s goal, it stated in a press release, was to “educate Bethlehem residents and officials about the benefits of solar energy and importance of state and federal level incentives for Pennsylvanians considering going solar.”
The visit was part of a larger tour around the state of businesses that are entirely powered by solar. “There’s never been a better time for small businesses to use the power of the sun to electrify their businesses. Plentiful sunshine and generous solar incentives are here. Now more businesses in Pennsylvania just need to take advantage of them,” Madeleine Hepting, organizer for PennEnvironment, explained.
Photo Courtesy Black River Farms
U.S. Representative Ryan Mackenzie (R-PA-07), one of the attendees at the event, reflected on the importance of federal support for these types of projects: “People want to do the right thing for the environment. But at the same time, in many instances, they are having to make financial decisions as well. So, we’re trying to make sure that as the market and consumers are headed in that direction of choosing alternative and renewable energy sources, we want to make sure that they are available and that they have the proper and appropriate level of support from the government to make those viable as a financial decision as well.”
Rep. Mackenzie was also one of the twenty-one Republicans who, in March, sent a letter to the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, U.S. Representative Jason Smith (R-MO-8), advocating for clean energy tax credits.
Also in attendance was Pennsylvania Representative Milou Mackenzie (R-PA-131), who wrote in a social media post, “Owners Kris and Andy Warner were trailblazers in the solar energy realm when they first installed the solar panels on their property back in 2010. We can be so grateful to have innovating business owners like the Warners in the 131st District who are helping every day to add more generated power back onto our electric grid!”
Pennsylvania has been ramping up its solar installations for a long time, with more on the horizon. Wes Checkeye, co-owner of Hellertown-based solar company Evoke Solar, told PennEnvironment, “I’ve been installing and designing solar for about 21 years. We’ve gotten to see thousands and thousands of people, residences, and businesses choose to go solar, save money, help the environment, and continue to make the world a better place. So, we’re excited to continue that process.”
Photo Courtesy Black River Farms
