In the renewable energy world, the 115-kilowatt solar array under construction on the roof of Bedminster, N.J.'s Public Works building is nothing special. But when viewed with 37 other mostly small-scale installations across northern Somerset County that have pooled resources to afford solar installations, Bedminster is part of a veritable 7-megawatt powerhouse.
Each individual installation contributes to that powerhouse under a roughly $35-million county initiative to install rooftop, ground mount or canopy solar panels on government buildings and schools that are structurally sound enough to support them. Morris County devised the aggregated-site solar program, backed by a private contractor, to build a 3.2-MW system last year. Since then, Morris has embarked on a second program, or "tranche," and a small but growing number of counties are following suit and several others are considering it. Somerset has the largest program so far.