Landfill in Mansfield eyed for solar panels
By Stephanie Prokop, Staff Writer
MANSFIELD—The county is looking into installing more renewable energy sources, including outfitting a closed landfill off of Burlington-Columbus Road with solar panels.
Solar panels could be placed on approximately half of the closed 54-acre landfill that is on the property of the Resource Recovery Complex in Mansfield, according to Mary Pat Robbie, director of the county Department of Resources Conservation .
“I’m sure that at least half of it could be an appropriate location for solar panels,” she said Tuesday.
Panels could also be placed on the roof of the composting site, which would cover about 176,00 square feet in total, she added.
No taxpayer money would be used in this project, she said. Funding would come from a private sector, she said, though an estimate of the amount was not yet available this week.
“If there’s a possibility for private funding, or grants, we’re going to go for it,” she said.
The goal, she added, would be to find a developer that would install the panels for free, and any profits generated from the panels could be shared from the energy generated and sold.
“There’s really been a lot of interest in solar, and it makes more sense from an economical viewpoint when you have a large installation,” she said.
Ms. Robbie said that getting the county to proceed with energy-saving projects has been a goal of hers since the early spring.
Ms. Robbie said she has pooled a qualified number of consultants, engineers, and other professionals who would assist in leading the projects.
Right now, the county sees revenue in excess of $200,000 in monthly sales from its methane-to-energy plant on the Mansfield-Florence border. This greener form of energy also provides power to the plant.
Another potential project would be to convert several of the county diesel trucks into operating on liquid natural gas or ethanol, said Ms. Robbie.
“That would certainly be cleaner and cheaper,” said Ms. Robbie.
Admittedly, the economics of these potential projects are a problem right now, with the price of gas going down, she said.
But the goal is to not only a focus on economics, but also on conservation in the long run, she added.

