Texas Town Will Soon Be 100 Percent Solar Powered
Pflugerville, a small town in central Texas might be 100 percent solar powered in the near future. Officials are in negotiations with Travis County and RRE Austin Solar concerning a project that will develop a solar plant that may be able to generate enough clean energy for the entire town.
The plant will be located around 15 miles from town on a 600 acre farm. It will consist of around $750,000 in solar panels. Austin Solar will be building the farm and is currently waiting on tax incentives to begin construction. The company says that without those incentives and tax breaks, they can’t afford to build the solar farm.
If all of the provisions are in place, construction should begin at the end of this year. Jeff Coleman, the city’s mayor said, “Pflugervillians, like most Central Texans, have a high degree of concern about the environment, and therefore I think our citizens will be proud that this opportunity is in Pflugerville.”
If the facilities plans are approved, Austin Solar would be required to have the facility completed and fully operational by 2014. The construction of the solar farm will create around 200 to 300 jobs. But, once operational, maintenance will only require around five employees.