Since 2019, Partner Engineering and Science, Inc. has assisted Greenkey Solar, LLC with its solar portfolio expansion. Partner delivered Phase I and II Environmental Site Assessments, Geotechnical Services, Land Surveys, and Wetland Assessments spanning 40 cities across Illinois, Oregon, and Pennsylvania. The project sites range from 10 to 60 acres for new photovoltaic solar generation stations including site grading, installation of underground utility lines, unpaved roadways, transformers, and other auxiliary structures and equipment.
Schedule coordination, landowners, geologic hazards, prior uses, and weather conditions were big challenges for this portfolio. These project sites require topographic surveys for civil engineering designs. Since many of these sites are farmland, our team can only visit the fields before or after the crops are harvested.
“We wanted to thank you for the quality work you’ve done for us! We have heard specifically from landowners that we work with that Partner has done a great job onsite. One landowner even said that they had difficulty finding the holes where test pits were dug. It’s always nice to hear positive feedback from a landowner. We appreciate your care and attention while on-site at our projects.”
— Carly Sellers, Director of Operation, Greenkey Solar.
Partner provided preliminary wetland determination on several of the sites. Through field assessment and resource review, our experts determined whether jurisdictional wetlands or aquatic features were present and whether local, state, or Federal permits were required. Partner worked with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) for regulatory verification and facilitated the Section 404 permits process when needed.
Partner also performed geotechnical explorations on a wide range of sites using different drilling techniques, and geophysical methods to determine the physical, chemical, electrical, and thermal properties of the soil. These analyses were used to generate practical and cost-effective designs for pile and pedestal racking foundations, as well as recommendations for paved and unpaved roads, slabs on grade, underground utility lines, and miscellaneous structures. Partner communicated effectively to gain appropriate access and complete our scopes on time and on budget.
