Special Projects
Part of LRCT’s land conservation work includes undertaking special projects that align with our conservation values. Currently, LRCT has two special projects we are focusing on including our Carbon Offset Project and most recently our Solar Shares Project.
NH Solar Shares Project
Lakes Region Conservation Trust (LRCT) is partnering with NH Solar Shares to bring a community solar PV project to the Center Harbor region, providing solar bill credits to local families in need of assistance with their electric bill. LRCT will host the project in the field behind their office on Route 25B in Center Harbor.
“We are delighted to partner with LRCT to build our third project. This project will produce enough solar to benefit 12 families (that rotate every two years) from the towns of Center Harbor, Moultonborough, Holderness, or Sandwich.” – Caryn Shield, NH Solar Shares Program Coordinator
“We are excited to partner with NH Solar Shares to bring more clean energy onto the grid that will benefit local families. And we are fully behind the project goal to design an environmentally-friendly solar field with minimal impact during the construction phase where the habitat is improved with pollinator plants and low blueberry bushes.” – Don Berry, LRCT President
The Center Harbor site for NH Solar Shares’ third community PV array was chosen because it was an existing field where tree removal was not needed. The site has a 97% Total Solar Resource Factor making the generation of solar electricity very effective. The array is made up of 72 (485w) solar PV panels totaling 35kWDC. It is estimated to generate 45,770kWH annually. If all of this solar electricity displaces fossil fuel generated electricity (date and time of the solar generation impacts this equation) it would save 70,488lbs of C02 each year.
Supporting the Project
“NH Solar Shares volunteers are teaming up with volunteers from LRCT, the Center Harbor Energy Committee and Conservation Commission and New England Commercial Solar Services to develop a model project that integrates solar energy into the landscape that compliments the land use needs for this particular location. If this project sounds of interest to anyone in the community, I hope they’ll get in touch with us.” – Sandra Jones, PAREI Director.
If you are interested in volunteering on the project’s committee, applying to become a participant or would like to make a donation to fund the NH Solar Shares – Center Harbor solar array, please visit nhsolarshares.org, email volunteer@plymouthenergy.org or call the PAREI office at 603-536-5030. NH Solar Shares is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Plymouth Area Renewable Energy Initiative a 501(c)(3) not for profit membership organization.
Apply to Become a Participant
Spots are currently available for low income households to receive the monthly credit on their electricity bill. To apply, fill out the application below.
NH Solar Shares will recruit and determine eligibility for the participants as well as hold educational meetings for participants and program volunteers about solar energy and home energy savings. Participants take part in the program for two years and pay their solar share forward to new income-eligible participants. Participants will be encouraged to participate in blueberry bush picking and care as well as site maintenance on organized work days.
About NH Solar Shares
NH Solar Shares was founded in 2018 by New Hampshire Electric Co-op (NHEC) and the Plymouth Area Renewable Energy Initiative (PAREI). Their mission is to “Share the Sun with Neighbors” by using local volunteers, grassroots fundraising, and grants. NH Solar Shares has helped dozens of income-eligible families in NHEC service territory AND added local, renewable power to the electric grid.
LRCT’s Forest Carbon Project
In 2013 California launched the carbon offset program as part of a larger initiative to reduce the state’s greenhouse gas emissions to 60% of 1990 emissions. Under this initiative, California established emission limits for regulated entities. These limits decrease each year. If a regulated entity emits more than it is allowed, it can offset up to 8% of its allowed carbon dioxide by purchasing carbon offsets from LRCT and other landowners.
In the spring of 2018, LRCT registered 8,000 acres of its owned conserved properties in a forest carbon project with California’s Carbon Offset Program. LRCT’s properties contain more carbon than the surrounding forests as established by the US Forest Service, and this additional carbon was monetized as carbon offsets by the State of California’s Carbon Offset program. The additional stored carbon of LRCT’s forests is equivalent to the annual carbon footprint of 80,000 automobiles. Now that the project is registered, LRCT may not harvest the amount of carbon that was issued as carbon offsets, however, LRCT may harvest the growth of the forest each year if it chooses to do so. In 2020 LRCT sold its offsets to a company that develops renewable energy resources and holds carbon offset assets.
LRCT used its carbon offset revenue to install solar panels on LRCT’s headquarters and to support LRCT’s long-term land stewardship and management responsibilities and secure the protection of wildlife habitat, water resources, climate resiliency, scenic values, and recreational opportunities on LRCT conserved lands. To fulfill the requirements of California’s program, LRCT must manage its project forests sustainably and inventory their carbon content periodically for the next 100 years.
LRCT joins other New England conservation groups, including the Appalachian Mountain Club and New England Forestry Foundation in participating in the California Carbon Offset program to support forest conservation and to help protect the planet.
Ensuring Carbon Content
During the inventory, a set of permanent circular plot sites are established, evenly spaced throughout the project site. Each plot site has a radius of 37.2 feet, and the plots are centered on a metal rod secured into the ground. There are 192 plot sites a quarter mile apart from one another on the LRCT-owned lands that are part of the forest carbon project.
Within each plot, foresters measure the height and diameter of all living and standing dead trees larger than five inches at breast height. These trees are numbered and marked with paint and in some cases, with a metal tag. Inventory of three plots requires a day’s work by a skilled forester. After the measurements have been completed, the carbon content is calculated for each plot and then a statistical process is used to determine the carbon content of the entire project area.
For more information, click on the photo below to view the Land Trust Alliance’s Saving Land Magazine “Looking to the Land to Mitigate Climate Change” featuring LRCT’s Carbon Project.
Additional Information About Carbon Offset Programs
- Finite Carbon – America’s leading developer of forest carbon offsets: http://www.finitecarbon.com/
- Gold Standard – A standard and certification body that stands for the best that can be achieved in climate and development projects: https://www.goldstandard.org/resources/faqs
