New York power

Generates renewable electricity from sunlight, supporting New York communities and producing enough electricity for about 330 homes for a year.*

Air quality & health in Ontario County

Ontario County has a population of 112,494. Across five conditions the American Lung Association tracks — childhood asthma, adult asthma, COPD, lung cancer, and cardiovascular disease — it reports a combined 24,522 cases in the county.

No ozone or particle pollution grades are available for this county in the most recent report. The figures above describe how many residents live with conditions sensitive to air quality — not measured pollution levels.

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

Among New York’s 567 solar plants in this category, the Yellow Mills Rd #2 Community Solar Farm in Farmington ranks #320 for the electricity it produced in 2024. It uses solar photovoltaic technology, meaning panels that turn sunlight directly into electricity, and began operating in 2022. Its capacity is 2.3 MW, a megawatt being a measure of the most power a plant can deliver at one moment.

In 2024 it generated 3.3 gigawatt-hours of electricity, a gigawatt-hour being a large unit of energy equal to a million kilowatt-hours, roughly enough for about 330 homes. Delivery runs through RG&E, and Generate Capital is the owner.

Environmental impact

Produces electricity without burning fuel, which avoids roughly 1,300 metric tons of carbon dioxide a year compared with producing the same electricity from the national mix of power sources — about the same as the carbon absorbed by about 1,300 acres of forest in a year.*

Nearby places worth exploring

Farmington sits in Ontario County, close to Canandaigua and its lake in the heart of the Finger Lakes. The lakeside city of Geneva, home to Hobart and William Smith Colleges, is also nearby, as is Bristol Mountain ski resort.

Local school district

Palmyra-Macedon Central School District

Common questions

* 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.