Former waste disposal site planned to provide clean renewable energy in Hawaii

Forest City Hawaii and Hawaiian Electric Company have reached a power purchase agreement for up to one megawatt of solar photovoltaic power to be generated at the Kapolei Sustainable Energy Park in Kapolei, Oahu. Hoku Solar will design and install the project using more than 4,200 solar panels atop a concrete racking system.

The contract must be approved by the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission with input from Consumer Advocate. The goal is to be operational by the end of 2011, subject to regulatory approval.

The 12-acre site near the James Campbell Industrial Park was an industrial disposal site until 1986. Under an order from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), dumping was halted and the site sealed under a plastic liner and thick mound of asphalt. Because the cap must be undisturbed, the site has been unusable until the James Campbell Company proposed it be used for a solar plant. PV panels can be installed directly on the surface, allowing “brightfields” to operate on sites not suitable for most other forms of development.

This innovative use for the site recognized the State’s need for renewable energy and is consistent with the vision of sustainability for Kapolei and with the Campbell Company’s history of stewardship.