New York power

Generates renewable electricity from sunlight, supporting New York communities and producing enough electricity for about 310 homes for a year.*

Air quality & health in Erie County

Erie County has a population of 946,147. Across five conditions the American Lung Association tracks — childhood asthma, adult asthma, COPD, lung cancer, and cardiovascular disease — it reports a combined 196,802 cases in the county.

The county received a grade of B for ozone pollution. For particle pollution — the fine soot and dust that can be breathed deep into the lungs — it received a grade of C.

Federal monitoring recorded 168 days of good air quality and 97 moderate days in the county over the most recent year, with 9 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

New York has 567 solar plants in this category, and AES Tonawanda Solar, at 797 East Park Drive in Tonawanda, ranks #358 of 567 by 2024 electricity produced. It uses solar photovoltaic technology, which means panels that turn sunlight directly into electricity with no moving parts. The plant began operating in 2020 and has a capacity of 2.0 MW (a megawatt is a measure of the most power it can deliver at one moment).

In 2024 it generated 3.1 gigawatt-hours, which is enough electricity for about 310 homes. A gigawatt-hour is a unit for a large amount of energy, and the same output can be written as 3,071 MWh, still about 310 homes. Solar is a renewable, carbon-free source, and National Grid is the local utility.

Environmental impact

Produces electricity without burning fuel, which avoids roughly 1,200 metric tons of carbon dioxide a year compared with producing the same electricity from the national mix of power sources — about the same as keeping about 460 tons of waste out of a landfill.*

Nearby places worth exploring

Tonawanda sits just north of Buffalo, where the Canalside waterfront on Lake Erie, the Buffalo Zoo, and the University at Buffalo are all familiar stops. Niagara Falls is a short drive north.

Local school district

Tonawanda City 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.