Solar garden to power affordable living on old Sydney radar base

Source: Tom Ayers · CBC NEWS · | July 12, 2021

Federal money to create what some are calling Nova Scotia's first net-zero greenhouse gas emissions community

Source: An array of solar panels will be placed in the field at the centre of Pine Tree Park Estates, an affordable living community on the old radar base in Sydney's Whitney Pier neighbourhood. (Submitted by Verschuren Centre for Sustainability in Energy and Environment)

An array of solar panels is set to go up at a former military base in Sydney, N.S., that now houses Pine Tree Park Estates, an affordable-living community run by the non-profit New Dawn Enterprises.

The solar garden will power all the homes and buildings on the site, cutting greenhouse gas emissions and making life even more affordable for residents.

New Dawn president Erika Shea said the 700-kilowatt project will cut people's energy costs by a third.

"It will make a big difference for the residents here," she said. "Their energy expenses will fall substantially and they'll be much more stable and predictable over time than they've been for the last decade."

The former radar base operated from 1954 to 1991 in Sydney's Whitney Pier neighbourhood. It includes 28 houses, a home for people with disabilities and a curling club.

All the buildings are being upgraded with proper insulation and are being retrofitted to convert them from oil heat to geothermal — or ground source — heating, with the power supplied by the solar garden.