Sustainability > Project Portfolio > Riverview
Riverview - Fulton, NY
In 2007, O'Brien & Gere was awarded the opportunity to develop a progressive sustainability project under contract with Operation Oswego County, an economic development corporation dedicated to stimulating growth in the upstate New York county. With funds provided by National Grid and the New York Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), O'Brien & Gere has created the conceptual model and site design for a fully integrated renewable energy business park located in the space formerly occupied by Miller Brewing Company in Fulton, NY.
When Miller, Oswego County’s largest employer, vacated the premises in 1994, the region lost a significant source of revenue and jobs. Now, more than a decade later, new industry is breathing life into this plant once again. Northeast Biofuels (NEB) began construction of their facilities on the 420-acre site in 2006, and began producing ethanol in early 2008. Utilizing much of the original fermenting equipment, NEB is an ideal occupant for the site, and will function as a central component of the proposed energy park.
The guiding principles of the Riverside Business Park project are the use of renewable resources, a marriage of ecology and agriculture with industry, high efficiency output, and the formation of a closed loop system with natural feedback. The end goal is to produce an entity which capitalizes on the natural resources of the region, and which will achieve a balance with its surroundings while providing an important boost for the local economy and a source of distinction for the region.
According to the site design, the park will incorporate a biomass supply from local agriculture in the production of ethanol at NEB. The unused portion will comprise feedstock for local cattle, whose manure and methane byproducts will, in turn, provide energy for the ethanol production facility and fertilizer for the crops. This system will also benefit from the incorporation of local municipal waste and an integrated fish farm. Over time, the park will be augmented by onsite energy generation potential. Gasification of biomass, photovoltaic technology, and wind turbines will translate into megawatts of green electricity.
All of this was not possible even a short time ago. The existing utilities had overwhelmingly negative perceptions of alternative power generation, public sentiment had not yet begun to favor alternatives, and governments had not created the fiscal incentives to make them economically sustainable. In this current climate, however, such alternatives are actively encouraged and assisted. With the help of increased support from governments and utility companies, and the adoption of Renewable Portfolio Standards in New York and elsewhere, projects like this can become prototypes for the next generation of energy production.
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