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New York power
Generates renewable electricity from sunlight, supporting New York communities and producing enough electricity for about 140 homes for a year.*
Air quality & health in Suffolk County
Suffolk County has a population of 1,523,170. Across five conditions the American Lung Association tracks — childhood asthma, adult asthma, COPD, lung cancer, and cardiovascular disease — it reports a combined 316,289 cases in the county.
The county received a grade of F for ozone pollution. For particle pollution — the fine soot and dust that can be breathed deep into the lungs — it received a grade of A.
Federal monitoring recorded 235 days of good air quality and 76 moderate days in the county over the most recent year, with 3 days rated unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Long-term exposure to air pollution has been linked to certain health conditions, particularly for children and older adults. Where electricity comes from affects how much combustion pollution is produced on the grid.
These figures describe the county as a whole and are not specific to this facility. Sources: American Lung Association – State of the Air (New York); U.S. EPA Air Quality Index.
The story behind this New York renewable energy facility
Riverhead is one of 567 solar plants in New York in its category, and it ranks #510 of 567 by 2024 electricity produced. It sits on Center Drive in Riverhead, Suffolk County, and has been running since 2011.
The plant uses solar photovoltaic technology, meaning panels that turn sunlight directly into electricity with no fuel burned. Its capacity is 1.5 MW, or megawatts, a measure of the most power it can deliver at one moment. Over 2024 it produced 1.4 gigawatt-hours, a unit of energy equal to about 140 homes’ yearly use.
Environmental impact
Produces electricity without burning fuel, which avoids roughly 530 metric tons of carbon dioxide a year compared with producing the same electricity from the national mix of power sources — about the same as not burning about 62,000 gallons of gasoline.*
Nearby places worth exploring
Riverhead sits on Long Island’s East End, close to the North Fork wine country and within reach of the Hamptons and Montauk Point. Fire Island’s beaches and Stony Brook University are also in Suffolk County.
Local school district
Hauppauge Union Free School District
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* Homes-powered and emissions comparisons are annual estimates based on national averages from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. “Homes powered” describes a quantity of electricity, not direct service to specific households. How we calculate this.
