Floating solar site approved for NJ reservoir
It could become largest such facility in the U.S.
By: David M. Zimmer
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... A long-debated plan to place floating solar panels on the Wanaque Reservoir is moving ahead against after New Jersey regulators approved incentives tied to a new round of large-scale solar development.
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The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities last week [03/12/2026] selected a 10-megawatt project proposed by the North Jersey District Water Supply Commission as part of the third round of the state's Competitive Solar Incentive Program.
..... The installation would sit near the commission's water treatment plant in Wanaque and could become the largest floating solar facility in the United States.
..... The approval comes more than a year after the same proposal stalled when BPU officials rejected a waiver request in 2024, citing unanswered environmental questions.
..... It allows the Wanaque project to compete for renewable energy credits under New Jersey's solar program, which is designed to help the state add 3,750 megawatts of new solar capacity by 2026.
..... "Solar and battery storage are the fasted and most cost-effective ways to build new electricity generation," BPU President Christine Guhl-Sadovy said as the board announced the awards.
..... State officials said the incentives are meant to expand power generation inside New Jersey while helping moderate electricity prices.
..... Other projects approved in this round include two developments in Deptford Township, in Gloucester County; a 4.1 -megawatt installation known as Court at Deptford Solar and a 10-megawatt project planned for the township landfill.
..... Unlike the other projects, the one in Wanaque called for solar panels mounted on floating platforms anchored on the reservoir rather than on surrounding land.
..... Built in the late 1920s. the Wanaque Reservoir supplies drinking water to about 3.5 million people across North Jersey.
..... Plans submitted by the commission and its private partner, Nexamp Solar, call for two floating arrays covering roughly 20 acres of the reservoir surface.
..... A 10-megawatt net- metered system would generate electricity for the water agency's operations, and a separate 5-megawatt community solar project would supply power to local subscribers.
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The larger system is expected to generate more than 13,400 megawatt-hours of electricity each year, offsetting about 90% of the commission's power sue, according to the commission's project proposal.
..... The community solar portion would generate roughly 6,799 megawatt-hours annually and could support as many as 1,000 residential subscribers, project filings show. At least 51% of those subscriptions would be reserved for low- or moderate-income households under the state's community solar program.
..... Developers have increasingly looked to reservoirs and other man-made water bodies as sites for solar projects, which avoid building on farmland or open space in a densely developed state.
..... Panels positioning over water can also operate more efficiently because cooler temperatures reduce heat buildup,e experts say.
..... Despite a large number of man-made lakes and reservoirs, floating solar remains relatively uncommon in New Jersey. The state's first installation opened in Sayrevill in 2020. It was followed by a larger project in 2023 at the Canoe brook Reservoir in Millburn, where panels were installed to power a water treatment plant.
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In January 2024, BPU officials rejected a waiver request for the Wanaque project after environmental regulators said the proposal lacked the detail needed to evaluate potential impacts. The reservoir lies within the Highlands Preservation Area, one of New Jersey's most tightly regulated environmental regions, where large solar developments must obtain a public-interest waiver to qualify for the state incentive program.
..... After that denial, officials with the water supply commission and Nexamp returned with additional documentation and met with regulators in early 2025 to address those concerns, state records show.
..... Both the Department of Environmental Protection and the Highlands Council later issued updated recommendations supporting the waiver, with conditions.