Judge calls for denial of Shepherd’s Run permit

COPAKE — Two administrative law judges weighing the merits of Hecate Energy LLC’s plans for a more than 700-acre solar project in this rural hamlet have recommended that the state deny the Chicago-based company’s application.

Following an adjudicatory hearing held last month that was attended by more than 100 residents, the judges wrote: “Based on the evidence … adduced during the adjudicatory hearing process, we recommend denial of the siting permit based upon Hecate’s failure to demonstrate compliance with applicable wetlands laws and regulations.”

The judges noted that Hecate failed to meet “substantive provisions of New York’s wetlands laws and regulations.” They also recommended a permit denial citing evidence that Hecate also failed to “demonstrate compliance with Chapter 135,” a local town law that implements a federally approved program on wetlands regulations.

Maureen F. Leary and Dawn MacKillop-Soller, administrative law judges at the New York State Department of Public Service’s ORES office, also noted that in their Oct. 5 hearing report and recommended decision that since Hecate submitted its application for a 42-megawatt solar farm near the intersection of Routes 23 and 7 in Craryville there have been 1,173 public comments received about the project.

Noting that 164 acres of the 723-acre property is classified as regulated wetlands and includes a large wetland complex adjacent to Taghkanic Creek and its tributaries, the judges wrote: “Finally, we find that … additional wetlands are on the project site that have not been properly characterized and classified … and justify further investigation.”

In a criticism of Hecate, the judges wrote, “Hecate’s actions during the adjudicatory phase were not in good faith, particularly with respect to its failure to timely and adequately respond to the Town’s discovery requests and provide unimpeded access to the site.

“Hecate imposed unreasonable conditions to the Town’s access, including limiting access only to areas where wetlands had already been delineated. Moreover, access to the site was not provided until the day before the hearing (Sunday, Sept. 13) and was limited to only certain areas of the site.”

The ultimate decision to grant or deny a final permit will be made by state ORES’ interim executive director Jason Zehr, who was appointed in April.

Because of a time clock on the project, ORES has until Oct. 19 to grant a site permit or deny Hecate. If the application moves ahead, Hecate will then have to come to the town to get a permit before construction can begin.