New Haven converts old landfill into 1,920-panel solar farm generating power and revenue

New Haven will host a 1,920-panel solar farm on a capped landfill, producing about 1.4 million kWh a year and delivering $72,000 annually to the city.

After two decades of inactivity, the capped landfill on Middletown Avenue in New Haven is being repurposed for a 1,920-panel solar farm under a 20-year ground lease with Greenskies Clean Energy. The installation, completed in less than a year despite a harsh winter, will generate more than 1.4 million kilowatt-hours annually—enough to power over 200 homes—and will deliver $72,000 each year, totaling over $1.4 million for the city.

Greenskies will sell the power directly to United Illuminating, where it will mix with other sources on the grid. Mayor Justin Elicker presented the project as a milestone in the city’s expanding solar portfolio, which already includes panels on 19 schools and a fleet of electric vehicles, and noted its environmental benefits equivalent to recycling 81,000 trash bags and sequestering carbon from nearly 16,000 ten-year-old tree seedlings.

Steven Winter, director of the Office of Climate & Sustainability, said the city will receive a $6,000 monthly check for the next two decades and is exploring additional solar opportunities. The site is visible from Interstate 91, and officials hope the model can continue beyond the lease term despite reduced federal climate funding.