We, the residents, landowners, camp owners, sportsmen, business owners, and families who cherish McKean County, Pennsylvania, demand that the RWE Stargazer Solar Project be stopped immediately.

The RWE Stargazer Solar Project is a proposed 480 megawatt (MW) utility-scale solar development in McKean County, PA, associated with RWE Solar Development LLC, affecting land in:

• Keating Township
• Hamlin Township
• Norwich Township
• Sergeant Township

This project sits in the heart of the Pennsylvania Wilds region and directly impacts communities surrounding:

• Smethport
• Port Allegany
• Mt. Jewett
• Crosby
• Hazel Hurst
• Bradford
• Rural areas bordering the Allegheny National Forest

Public land records confirm that RWE Solar Development LLC has recorded exclusive purchase options and transmission line and access easements tied to the Stargazer Solar Project in McKean County.

This is not speculative.
It is documented.

We are not asking for adjustments.
We are not asking for mitigation.
We are demanding that this project be stopped.

 
McKean County Is Prestigious for a Reason
McKean County is not empty land waiting for industrial development.

It is part of the Pennsylvania Wilds, known for:

• Expansive hardwood forests
• Black cherry and hemlock ridgelines
• Trout streams and cold-water fisheries
• Hunting traditions
• Generational family camps
• Dark skies and stargazing
• Scenic drives between Mt. Jewett, Smethport, Port Allegany, and Bradford

Families built cabins here to escape industrial sprawl.

Visitors travel to Mt. Jewett for quiet and outdoor recreation.
Sportsmen hunt near Smethport and Port Allegany.
Camp owners treasure the woods around Crosby and Sergeant Township.
Residents value the rural landscape surrounding Hazel Hurst and Keating Township.

The Allegheny National Forest and surrounding private lands define the identity of this region.

The name “Stargazer” suggests natural beauty and open skies.

A 480 MW utility-scale industrial solar complex with transmission corridors, substations, fencing, grading, and decades-long infrastructure represents permanent landscape conversion at a scale McKean County has never experienced.

Once converted, this land does not return to its former state.

 
Proof of Siting and Land Control in McKean County, PA
McKean County Recorder of Deeds filings show RWE Solar Development LLC has recorded:

• Memoranda of Exclusive Option to Purchase
• Lease and Easement Agreements
• Option and Transmission Line and Access Easements

Recorded instruments from 2024 through January 2026 affect Keating Township and Hamlin Township, with references to Norwich and Sergeant Townships.

Additionally, the NYISO interconnection queue lists Stargazer facilities in McKean County, PA with RWE Solar Development LLC as developer.

Direct proof links:

NYISO Interconnection Queue (official spreadsheet):
https://www.nyiso.com/documents/20142/1407078/NYISO-Interconnection-Queue.xlsx

Stargazer I (NYISO C24-175 – McKean County, PA):
https://www.interconnection.fyi/project/nyiso-c24-175

Stargazer II (NYISO C24-176 – McKean County, PA):
https://www.interconnection.fyi/project/nyiso-c24-176

NYISO Cluster Member List:
https://www.nyiso.com/documents/20142/1396587/Cluster-Member-List.xlsx

Land is being consolidated.
Transmission corridors are being positioned.
Infrastructure rights are being secured.

The Stargazer Solar Project is actively advancing.

 
What a 480 MW Utility-Scale Solar Project Means for Mt. Jewett, Smethport, Port Allegany & Surrounding Communities
A project of this magnitude requires:

• Large-scale vegetation clearing
• Grading and soil disturbance
• Permanent fencing
• Electrical substations
• Transmission line corridors
• Industrial access roads
• Long-term maintenance zones

This is not residential solar.
This is industrial-scale energy development.

At 480 MW, the Stargazer Solar Project ranks among the largest proposed solar facilities in Pennsylvania.

Such a development fundamentally alters the rural character surrounding Mt. Jewett, Smethport, Port Allegany, and the townships that define northern McKean County.

 

RWE’s Documented Regulatory and Legal History
When a corporation seeks to industrialize rural land, its documented history matters.

Thames Water (Owned by RWE at the Time) – Pollution Convictions
RWE’s Corporate Responsibility Report (2005) discloses Thames Water was charged with nine water pollution offences in 2004 and additional offences in 2005 tied to effluent discharge breakdowns.

Source:
https://www.rwe.com/-/media/RWE/documents/09-verantwortung-nachhaltigkeit/cr-berichte/EN/en-bericht-2005.pdf

 
RWE Clean Energy – Stop Work Order (Georgia, USA)
Oglethorpe County, Georgia issued a stop work order in January 2024 tied to stormwater ordinance violations and runoff concerns involving a solar project developed by RWE Clean Energy.

Sources:
https://www.theoglethorpeecho.com/local-news/county-solar-farm-stop-work

 
RWE npower – £2 Million Regulatory Penalty
Ofgem issued a £2 million penalty against npower (an RWE subsidiary at the time).

Source:
https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/sites/default/files/docs/2011/10/npower-complaints-fine-oct-2011_1.pdf

 
Aberthaw Power Station – EU Emissions Case (C-304/15)
Case C-304/15 concerns EU air pollution rules applied to Aberthaw Power Station operated by RWE.

Court listing:
https://curia.europa.eu/juris/liste.jsf?jur=C%2CT%2CF&language=en&num=C-304%2F15&td=ALL

 
McKean County should not be pressured into hosting a 480 MW industrial solar facility without serious consideration of scale, precedent, and long-term impact.

 
Our Demand
We call on:

• Keating Township Supervisors
• Hamlin Township Supervisors
• Norwich Township Supervisors
• Sergeant Township Supervisors
• McKean County Commissioners
• Pennsylvania DEP
• Pennsylvania DCNR
• Pennsylvania Game Commission
• State and Federal officials

to oppose and deny advancement of the RWE Stargazer Solar Project in McKean County, Pennsylvania.

No ordinance changes.
No special accommodations.
No approvals.

Stop the 480 MW Stargazer Solar Project.

 
Why Sign Now?
Because land consolidation is already underway.
Because transmission corridors are being secured.
Because once clearing begins, rural character cannot be restored.

McKean County — including Mt. Jewett, Smethport, Port Allegany, Crosby, Hazel Hurst, Bradford, and surrounding townships — deserves to remain part of the Pennsylvania Wilds, not an industrial solar zone.

Sign this petition to stop the RWE Stargazer Solar Project in McKean County, PA.