New York power

Generates renewable electricity from sunlight, supporting New York communities and producing enough electricity for about 690 homes for a year.*

Air quality & health in Genesee County

Genesee County has a population of 57,529. Across five conditions the American Lung Association tracks — childhood asthma, adult asthma, COPD, lung cancer, and cardiovascular disease — it reports a combined 12,203 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

New York has 567 solar plants in this category, and Knapp West in Akron, Genesee County, ranks #142 of 567 by 2024 electricity produced. It began operating in 2021 and uses solar photovoltaic technology, meaning panels that turn sunlight directly into electricity. Its rated capacity is 5.0 MW, a megawatt being a measure of the most power a plant can deliver at one moment.

Last year it generated 6.9 gigawatt-hours, a unit for large amounts of electricity, which is about 690 homes’ worth of yearly use. AES Distributed Energy owns it, and it connects to the National Grid system. Because solar produces power only in daylight, it runs on the sun’s schedule, and the sun-carried power comes without burning fuel.

Environmental impact

Produces electricity without burning fuel, which avoids roughly 2,700 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 2,800 acres of forest in a year.*

Nearby places worth exploring

Akron sits in western New York farm country, roughly midway between Buffalo and Rochester. Batavia is a nearby town in the same county, and the Darien Lake amusement park is a short drive away.

Local school district

Akron 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.