New York power

Generates renewable electricity from wind, supporting New York communities and producing enough electricity for about 28,000 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

Out of 33 wind plants in New York, Ball Hill Wind Energy near Forestville in Chautauqua County ranks #6 by the electricity it produced in 2024. It began operating in 2023 and uses one onshore wind turbine setup, meaning wind farm equipment built on land rather than offshore.

In 2024 it produced 275.9 gigawatt-hours, a unit of energy equal to a million kilowatt-hours, which is about 28,000 homes’ worth of electricity. Its capacity is 107.5 MW, a megawatt being the most power it can deliver at one moment, and wind is a renewable, carbon-free source.

Environmental impact

Produces electricity without burning fuel, which avoids roughly 110,000 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 41,000 tons of waste out of a landfill.*

Nearby places worth exploring

Chautauqua County is best known for Chautauqua Lake and the Chautauqua Institution, a long-running summer gathering place on its shores. The city of Jamestown sits nearby, and the Lake Erie shoreline and its wine country run along the county’s northern edge.

Local school district

Pine Valley Central School District (South Dayton)

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.