New York power

Generates renewable electricity from sunlight, supporting New York communities and producing enough electricity for about 720 homes for a year.*

Air quality & health in Chautauqua County

Chautauqua County has a population of 124,891. Across five conditions the American Lung Association tracks — childhood asthma, adult asthma, COPD, lung cancer, and cardiovascular disease — it reports a combined 26,694 cases in the county.

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

Federal monitoring recorded 233 days of good air quality and 29 moderate days in the county over the most recent year, with 1 day 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 Rivard 2, on Werle Road in Sheridan, ranks #128 of them by 2024 electricity produced. It began operating in 2023 and has a capacity of 4.6 MW, meaning the most power it can deliver at one moment under full sun.

Over the year it produced 7.2 gigawatt-hours, a gigawatt-hour being a way of counting a large amount of electricity over time, which is enough for about 720 homes. It uses solar photovoltaic technology, meaning panels that turn sunlight directly into electricity with no fuel burned. Generate Capital owns it, and National Grid is the local utility.

Environmental impact

Produces electricity without burning fuel, which avoids roughly 2,800 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 320,000 gallons of gasoline.*

Nearby places worth exploring

Sheridan sits in Chautauqua County, not far from the Lake Erie shoreline and its wine country along the county’s northern edge. Further south, Chautauqua Lake and the Chautauqua Institution draw visitors, and the city of Jamestown is close by.

Local school district

Dunkirk 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.