Conway Planning Board Continues Review of BlueWave Solar Proposal Amid Safety Concerns

The Conway Planning Board pushed its evaluation of BlueWave Solar’s agricultural project to a fourth hearing after residents raised concerns about landscape impacts and emergency safety.

Agricultural Dual-Use Plans and Grid Interconnection in Conway

The installation is designed as a dual-use system that lets landowners continue farming beneath the solar infrastructure. Panels would sit 10 feet above the ground with enough spacing for sunshine to reach fields where animals graze, according to Melinda Costello, a civil engineer with Weston & Sampson. Unlike fixed arrays, these panels would track the sun throughout the day. Energy generated by the system would feed into the local electric grid, where Eversource will purchase it through the state’s SMART 3.0 Program.

Joel Lindsay, vice president of project development at BlueWave, explained via email that the company approached Boyden as part of its outreach efforts to farmers, highlighting a focus on agrivoltaics that combine clean energy with sustainable farming. Even so, residents voiced sharp concerns at early public hearings regarding the safety of the battery energy storage system and potential changes to the view of the farmland along Route 116.

Screening Buffers and Slope Calculations at the Roaring Brook Road Site

Planning board members spent considerable time examining how the project will blend into its rural surroundings. While BlueWave’s updated designs include a 30-foot buffer along the northern boundary, planning board member Jeff Lacy requested that the developer extend robust screening across other property lines as well. I want a buffer that’s going to work quickly and not wait years and years and years to mature until everybody’s old, Lacy said during the proceedings.

Planning Board Chair George Forcier noted that a new homeowner in town submitted a letter expressing worry over how the solar array would impact their pastoral view. Costello defended the updated site plans, maintaining that the landscaping complies with town bylaws that mandate large-scale solar facilities include a 30-foot screen of native trees and shrubs. A separate dispute emerged over slope calculations. While Costello asserted that the foundation points of the proposed array rest on slopes between 5% and 10% in compliance with local rules restricting commercial solar systems to grades under 15%, Lacy and Forcier calculated that the array rests on steeper terrain exceeding 15%.

Battery Storage Safety Scrutiny and Next Hearing Date

Beyond visual buffers, local officials zeroed in on the placement and safety of the battery energy storage system. Lacy criticized the current layout, arguing it seems to be out in the middle of things and highly visible and suggesting it be relocated behind an existing barn on the property. Forcier called for solid, attributable information regarding the safety of the SolBank 3.0 battery storage model proposed for the site.

Costello pointed to the developer’s 202 pages of written responses submitted to the board, which outline federal and state safety standards regulating battery energy storage installations. The planning board set the next public hearing for Tuesday, June 23, at 7 p.m., giving members and residents time to digest the extensive documentation before taking further action.