New Brunswick's first and only solar farm is expanding

New Brunswick's only solar farm is getting ready to expand.

Dairy farmer FrankJoppis splitting some of his fields between hisHolsteinherdand his solarpanels as hedivideshis farming operation between bovine and sunshine.

"I'm a sun farmer," said JoppofAuenlandFarm in Mount Pisgah, just outside of Sussex. "I like sunny days."

After spending 35 years focusing on his dairy herd, Joppflipped the switch on his solar farm in late December. Now, he's ready to enter the next phase of his plan to have the biggest solar farm in the province.

"The largest, the first and the only," saidJopp. "Butwe are very small, really. We only produce enough solar power for eight homes, or I produce a little bit more than what I need on my farm."

Still, the 15 towers, each sporting 16 solarpanels, are enough to giveJoppthe title of largest solar farm in theprovince. Next week, he'll start to add anadditional10 towerssporting 16panels apiece.

Mark McAloon, the founder and president of NexGen Energy, a renewable energy developer that has been installing the equipment on Jopp's farm, said there will be 400 solar panels installed once the expansion is done.

Jobbsaidhe sells every bit of energy he harvests to NB Power. Depending on how the coming months go after the expansion, he saidhe may consider quadrupling his solar herd.

Hurdles to overcome

McAloonsaidwhile solar technology isn't new, there are still some hurdles to getting solar projects up and running in New Brunswick.

"It's new for every level of government," he said. "Whether it's the municipality, the provincial electrical inspection authorities, or boots-on-the-ground-technicians that are doing the wiring to the poles. It's just so new."

McAloonsaidonce projects likeJopp'ssolar farm become more common in New Brunswick,government agencies and inspectors will become more accustomed to their requirements and the projects will be easier to set up.

"At the end of the day, everybody wants to see these projects develop and wants to see them done," saidMcAloon.

That includesJopp, who saidhestronglybelieves in the future of solar technology and would be happy to relinquish the title New Brunswick's largest solar farm.

"I hope in six months that will change," saidJopp.