ARLINGTON, Va. — The sun is shining brightly on Arlington County. The Virginia region has approved a partnership with Dominion Energy to purchase power from a solar farm located in Pittsylvania County. This project aligns with Arlington County's mission to be 100% reliant on renewable energy by 2025.
"With this agreement, we're 80% to our goal," says Libby Garvey, Arlington County Board Chair.
Making this leap was no small effort. The board has been very careful in its endeavors to use more renewable energy.
"One of our concerns was if we were harming the environment in Pittsylvania County to supposedly help the environment," says Garvey. "We were reassured by Dominion's regulations. They're very careful about making sure the environment is protected and planting vegetation around the solar farm."
This commitment from Dominion Energy is part of its mission to rely more on renewable energy. The company plans to make an 80% reduction in carbon emissions by 2050. With this solar farm, 120 megawatts of power will be generated. 38 megawatts will serve Arlington County and the remainder will be for Amazon's new headquarters.
Not only will this initiative positively affect the environment, it will have an economic impact as well.
"We have a very good partnership with Pittsylvania County," says Dianne Corsello, Business Development Director at Dominion Energy. "When we build this facility, there will be 250 jobs during construction." More jobs and more renewable energy resources will benefit everyone in all of Virginia.
This article is sponsored by Dominion Energy.