Showing posts with label solar fire department. Show all posts
Showing posts with label solar fire department. Show all posts
Friday, March 20, 2015
Tuesday, December 16, 2014
Monolith Solar Associates and NYSUT partnership achieves milestone
December 02, 2014
Caption: Solar panels on the roof of NYSUT headquarters in Latham. Photo by El-Wise Noisette.
Monday, September 22, 2014
The Rockefellers are getting out of oil and starting to buy the sun - what's next?!
Rockefellers to withdraw fossil fuel investments
NEW YORK — The scions of the American oil industry are divesting from fossil fuels.
The Rockefeller Brothers Fund, established by Standard Oil Co. tycoon John D. Rockefeller, will begin untangling its $860 million of investments from fossil fuels and shift those dollars toward renewable energy, the philanthropy will announce Monday.
The action is another symbolic step away from greenhouse-gas emitting fuels, which most scientists blame for warming the planet. It also shows the expanse of the "divest-invest" push led by environmental activists. The effort aims to persuade large endowments to shift their investments from fossil fuels to cleaner sources, such as renewable energy, that first targeted universities.
The theory is that policies aimed at restraining carbon emissions will make investing in fossil fuels more risky. Environmental activists point to credit downgrades of coal companies and coal-based utilities following proposed Obama administration cuts to carbon emissions from power plants as an example.
Events around New York timed around Tuesday's United Nations climate summit — such as a march Sunday that organizers say drew 300,000 — have underscored the push to address climate change.
The Rockefeller move highlights some of that sentiment. Standard Oil, after all, spawned the likes of ExxonMobil and Chevron.
The divesting movement is picking up steam. The Rockefeller announcement will come as part of a broader coalition of philanthropies, non-governmental organizations and faith groups that will reveal $50 billion worth of assets divesting from fossil fuels.
Philanthropies are a newer target. More than 160 environmentalists from 44 countries last week prodded philanthropies — particularly those that offer grants and other funds to projects aimed at curbing climate change — to pull investments in fossil fuel companies.
Institutional lenders also have begun exploring ways to offer more environmentally friendly options for their clients. Activists are pressuring traders as well — on Monday, they protested on Wall Street with a rally that reminded many of the Occupy movement.
But the divestment push is still fairly new and faces some roadblocks.
Deborah Gordon, director of the climate and energy program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said she doesn't envision that markets — especially commodities traders — will quickly respond to longer-term climate threats.
"I'm a little less hopeful when it comes to the investment community," Gordon told the Washington Examiner. "They are very much trying to take advantage of the instance in trade. And climate change is very much not that."
Pension funds, too, are a bit trickier for the divestment movement. They're a big target, controlling billions of dollars in assets. But they are run by boards with a responsibility to their pensioners — and fossil fuel companies have provided fairly stable returns.
Scott Stringer, the comptroller for New York City, told the Washington Examiner that withdrawing the city's $160 billion pension fund from fossil fuel investments is "on the table," but he noted he is just one person on the board.
"I'm the fiduciary of the fund. It's not my money. There's five other people — I don't have a unilateral role in this," Stringer said at the People's Climate March on Sunday. "But there's so much more we can do, like on corporate governance. So we're looking at all those options."
Thursday, August 21, 2014
Fire Company makes the jump to Green Energy
CAPITAL REGION
Solar Panels Installed at Fire District #2 in Rotterdam
ROTTERDAM, N.Y. -- Rotterdam residents are hoping for some more sunny days now that District Two's Fire Station on Curry Road is going solar.
The station had that last of 160 panels installed Thursday on its roof.
One of the district's commissioners says the roof had to be replaced anyway, so they figured they would save the tax payers some money by moving the station to solar energy. The panels will produce about 60 percent of the building's energy.
Over the next 20 years the panels are expected to save more than $47,000.
"It could increase, looking at $47,000 now, a couple thousand dollars a year in savings. Knowing that as they go along in the process it will go higher," said Rotterdam Fire District 2 Commissioner Frank Zadlo.
"This system is going to produce a lot more during the summer and a lot less during the winter, so as they go along in the summer they'll be crediting their account to help them through the shorter winter days," said Chris Delucia, operations manager for Monolith Solar.
Monolith Solar says the fire department entered into a power purchase agreement which means no money down for the installation of the panels.
Tuesday, June 3, 2014
Rooftop Solar Adoption in Emerging Residential Markets
SOURCE: AP/Manuel Balce Ceneta
This house owned by Ketch Ryan of Chevy Chase, Maryland, has solar panels installed on the roof.
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Solar energy has become a tangible solution to rising electricity costs and carbon emissions for many Americans. Declining installation prices and solar-friendly policies in many states have led to tremendous growth in rooftop solar installations. In 2013, residential solar photovoltaic, or PV, capacity increased 60 percent over the previous year, reaching 792 megawatts. Today, a new solar power system is installed every four minutes in the United States.
The rooftop solar phenomenon took off in states such as California, Arizona, and New Jersey—the three largest U.S. solar markets—and has been spreading, albeit at a slower pace, to other states. Maryland, Massachusetts, and New York, for example, are developing strong residential solar markets, but the number of residential installations in each state is less than half of the total residential installations in Arizona and New Jersey and less than 10 percent of the total residential installations in California.
Last year, the Center for American Progress released an issue brief titled “Solar Power to the People: The Rise of Rooftop Solar Among the Middle Class,” which found that rooftop solar systems were being overwhelmingly adopted in middle-class neighborhoods with median incomes ranging from $40,000 to $90,000 in Arizona, California, and New Jersey. This issue brief explores the income make-up of rooftop solar adopters in the developing markets of Maryland, Massachusetts, and New York.
Interestingly, these emerging residential solar markets have some similarities to—as well as some marked differences with—the more established solar markets, such as California and New Jersey, in terms of the income characteristics of solar energy system owners. New York and Massachusetts have followed rooftop solar adoption trends similar to those of more developed markets, with more than 80 percent of residential solar installations in New York and nearly 70 percent of residential installations in Massachusetts occurring in ZIP codes with median incomes ranging from $40,000 to $90,000. Maryland, however, has not followed the same pattern, as just 45 percent of its residential solar installations have occurred within neighborhoods in the $40,000–$90,000 median income range.
In this issue brief, we present the findings of our rooftop solar adoption analysis in each state and then discuss the importance of good solar policies, including the effect they can have on whether middle- and low-income residents take advantage of solar technologies.
Rooftop solar adoption in Maryland, Massachusetts, and New York
Maryland, Massachusetts, and New York are a few of the up-and-coming residential solar markets in the United States. “Solar Power to the People” hypothesized that the more established residential solar markets—including California, Arizona, and New Jersey—would provide important insights into the way that rooftop solar is being adopted in other states. This theory holds true for Massachusetts and New York, but the income characteristics of residential solar customers in Maryland deviated somewhat from the more mature markets.
Comparison of emerging markets
We analyzed residential solar installations within each ZIP code and their corresponding median household incomes to determine the distribution of installations by income level and state. (see Figure 1) Of the three states, Maryland has the lowest percentage of residential installations in the $40,000–$90,000 range at just 44.5 percent; New York and Massachusetts have more than 80 percent and 67 percent, respectively, of installations in this range.
To understand whether the distribution of installations follows the population distribution, we plotted the number of installations and the number of households in one graph for each state. (see Figure 2) In these graphs, the number of households should be used as a point of reference, rather than as a direct comparison to installations. For example, if the number of households peaks at a certain income range, one would expect the number of installations within that range to peak if the distribution of installations was following the same pattern as household distribution. In other words, if there are more households in the $50,000–$60,000 range, one might expect there to be more installations in that range as well.
Massachusetts provides a good example of how the adoption of rooftop solar across income levels can follow household distribution almost perfectly, with residential installations spread fairly evenly over the population. Rooftop solar adoption in New York follows household distribution at the lower and higher ends of the spectrum, but installations are more heavily concentrated compared to population in the middle-income levels. In Maryland, residential solar installations follow a similar pattern to household distribution but are skewed more toward the higher income brackets.
We also examined the growth of rooftop solar installations across income levels in each state by year since 2009. (see Figure 3)
While rooftop solar installations in areas with median incomes ranging from $40,000 to $90,000 have increased in both Maryland and Massachusetts since 2009, they have not followed the same year-over-year growth trend as residential installations in middle-class neighborhoods in the more developed markets. In New Jersey, for example, the percentage of installations occurring in neighborhoods with median incomes in the $40,000–$90,000 range increased steadily every year from 2009 to 2012—rising from 55.9 percent in 2009 to 65.5 percent in 2012. In Maryland and Massachusetts, residential installations in middle-class neighborhoods have not shown the same predictable upward pattern over the past five years. Similarly, New York’s rooftop solar installations in the $40,000–$90,000 range have hovered around 80 percent since 2009.
Other findings
Through this analysis, we also identified the areas that experienced the most growth from 2012 to 2013 among the three emerging solar markets. In Massachusetts and Maryland, the highest percentage increase in annual residential installations from 2012 to 2013 occurred in neighborhoods with median incomes ranging from $40,000 to $50,000. Massachusetts saw a 106 percent increase within that income range—from 162 installations in 2012 to 334 installations in 2013. Maryland’s residential installations within the $40,000–$50,000 income range grew from 26 installations in 2012 to 34 installations in 2013—a 31 percent increase. In New York, residential installations that fell within the $110,000–$120,000 income range saw the highest percentage growth, from 12 installations in 2012 to 35 installations in 2013—a 192 percent increase.
Although it is difficult to tie the findings from our analysis to particular policies, it is clear that policy plays an important role in the accessibility and affordability of rooftop solar. The next section discusses the impact that good solar policies can have on residential solar markets and highlights policies that could ensure that even more middle- and low-income households have access to solar technology.
Policy is critical
Policy has been integral to developing strong solar markets, and states that are able to capture all of the economic and environmental benefits that solar technology can provide will be better positioned to meet current and future renewable energy targets, as well as carbon-emissions standards.
California has established itself as a leader in energy and environmental policy in the United States and should be a model for other states on how to effectively scale rooftop solar installations. Under solar policies, such as the California Solar Initiative, or CSI—which has provided rebates to residential and nonresidential solar customers of the three major investor-owned California utilities since 2007—the Golden State has seen incredible solar growth and has become the largest residential solar market in the country. Case in point: California went from about 2,000 residential solar installations registered in the CSI database in 2007 to more than 90,000 residential installations today.
Maryland, Massachusetts, and New York have not come close to the number of residential installations in California but have implemented several policies that could help them eventually get there. (see Table 1)
The solar policies listed in Table 1 have been effective tools to encourage solar adoption and increase its affordability. Net metering is a state policy that allows rooftop solar system owners to receive credit on their electric bills for any excess power that they generate beyond what they use onsite, which can shorten the payback period for a residential solar photovoltaic system. Because rooftop solar systems are essentially taxable property, many states and municipal governments have exempted them from local property tax and sales tax to keep related costs low. Property Assessed Clean Energy, or PACE, programs allow homeowners to borrow money from local governments to finance PV systems or energy-efficiency upgrades. These low-interest, municipal loans are then typically repaid through a special assessment on the owner’s property tax bill. Solar Renewable Energy Certificates, or SRECs, provide a market-derived credit for every 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity generated from solar PV systems, which system owners can sell upfront or over time to reduce their system’s cost. State tax incentives provide tax credits based either on the cost of the system or on the amount of electricity produced by the system, lowering a system owner’s tax bill at the end of the year.
These policies are vital to the affordability of rooftop solar and its continued growth among middle- and lower-income residents. Although solar installation costs have dropped dramatically over the past few years, the average cost for a 5-kilowatt system—the typical size of a residential solar power system—in Maryland is currently about $23,250. Without rebates and other solar policies, it would be extremely difficult for middle- and low-income Maryland households to purchase a system outright.
Even with rebates and tax incentives, it can be challenging to pay the upfront costs, as processes to claim rebates can take months and tax credits can only be realized during the following year’s tax season. Solar leasing programs have helped address this issue by reducing or eliminating the upfront costs, but they are not available in every state, and not every household can meet the minimum credit score of 680 or 700—depending on the state—needed to qualify for a lease. State green banks and financing authorities, which help facilitate private-sector financing for clean energy projects, could begin to fill the gap by offering or backing solar leases and loans for those with lower credit scores, but these financing authorities currently only exist in Connecticut, California, Hawaii, Massachusetts, and New York. Connecticut’s green bank provides solar leases to residents with credit scores as low as 640.
An example of an effective state initiative that is currently making rooftop solar affordable for low-income residents is California’s Single-family Affordable Solar Homes, or SASH, program, which was established as part of a 2006 law that directs 10 percent of CSI funding toward helping low-income households access solar technology. Managed by nonprofit solar contractor GRID Alternatives, the program provides free or low-cost solar PV systems to low-income homeowners and has leveraged private-sector investment and community volunteers to install 3,684 PV systems to date. This type of program is needed in other states to ensure that low-income communities can access rooftop solar.
Regardless of the income level of those taking advantage of solar technology, the benefits that rooftop solar power systems provide to the electric grid are the same: reduced transmission and distribution costs; avoided fuel costs; decreased demand during peak periods, or the periods when electricity is more expensive, in certain regions; and an energy source with zero carbon emissions. This is important to consider, especially as some utilities are calling for policies, such as net metering, to be altered or eliminated entirely based on the assertion that rooftop solar system owners are not paying their fair share for use of the electric grid.
Because of net metering and other solar policies, rooftop solar is within reach for many Americans. Smart solar policies and programs have made solar technologies more accessible and have empowered households across the country to invest in a clean energy future, but more can be done to ensure that rooftop solar reaches a greater share of middle- and low-income Americans.
Conclusion
Our analysis of three emerging solar markets shows that middle-class homeowners make up a significant percentage of rooftop solar customers, especially in Massachusetts and New York. Regulators and policymakers in these two states and Maryland, as well as across the country, should be thinking about ways to provide more access to solar and other distributed technologies, rather than scaling back good solar programs and policies. Effective residential solar policies expand access to middle- and low-income residents while also increasing the use of clean, distributed power that can reduce carbon emissions and add value to the grid.
Data collection and methodology
To determine the income distribution of rooftop solar system owners, we collected data from the Maryland Energy Administration, Massachusetts’s Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. The Maryland Energy Administration and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority track all residential and nonresidential solar installations for which individuals or entities receive a solar rebate within their respective states. In Massachusetts, the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs tracks all solar installations that are registered as qualified generation units under the solar carve-out requirement of the state’s renewable portfolio standard. The installation data used in this analysis for Maryland and New York were current as of April 30. The Massachusetts solar installation dataset was updated on May 1.
Using the Bureau of the Census’s 2012 five-year estimates from the American Community Survey, we found the median household income for each ZIP code in which there was a residential solar installation accounted for in the Maryland, Massachusetts, and New York databases. We analyzed 5,359 installations and 369 ZIP codes in Maryland, 8,557 installations and 470 ZIP codes in Massachusetts, and 7,429 installations and 1,074 ZIP codes in New York.
Data limitations
We analyzed median income data at the ZIP-code level from the Bureau of the Census because actual income data for each installation are not publicly available. Actual incomes associated with each installation could be higher or lower than the median incomes.
Mari Hernandez is a Research Associate on the Energy team at the Center for American Progress.
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Solar paired with horticulture puts an entirely new twist on green gardening!
Solar-powered 'supertrees' breathe life into Singapore's urban oasis
updated 7:08 AM EDT, Fri June 8, 2012
Singapore's 250-acre green development, Gardens by the Bay, is part of Singapore's redevelopment and new downtown area at Marina Bay. It features three waterfront gardens -- Bay East, Bay Central and Bay South, which opens to the public on June 29.
(CNN) -- Singapore's latest development will finally blossom later this month, with an imposing canopy of artificial trees up to 50 meters high towering over a vast urban oasis.
The colossal solar-powered supertrees are found in the Bay South garden, which opens to the public on June 29. It is part of a 250-acre landscaping project -- Gardens by the Bay -- that is an initiative from Singapore's National Parks Board that will see the cultivation of flora and fauna from foreign lands.
The man-made mechanical forest consists of 18 supertrees that act as vertical gardens, generating solar power, acting as air venting ducts for nearby conservatories, and collecting rainwater. To generate electricity, 11 of the supertrees are fitted with solar photovoltaic systems that convert sunlight into energy, which provides lighting and aids water technology within the conservatories below.
Varying in height between 25 and 50 meters, each supertree features tropical flowers and various ferns climbing across its steel framework. The large canopies also operate as temperature moderators, absorbing and dispersing heat, as well as providing shelter from the hot temperatures of Singapore's climate to visitors walking beneath.
The project is part of a redevelopment scheme to create a new downtown district in the Marina Bay area, on Singapore's south side. Project organizers hope the completed Gardens by the Bay will become an eco-tourist destination showcasing sustainable practices and plants from across the globe.
Speaking at a preview event last November, Lee Kuan Yew, the first prime minister of the Republic of Singapore, said the project would "showcase what we can do to bring the world of plants to all Singaporeans," adding that the gardens would become "the pride of Singapore."
Bridges dubbed "skywalks" have been erected connecting several of the higher 50-meter supertrees (the same height as the Arc de Triomphe in Paris), letting visitors stroll between them and view the gardens from dizzying heights.
The horticultural heaven also boasts two green conservatories in close proximity -- the Cloud Forest and Flower Dome -- climate-controlled biomes inspired by the shape of an orchid flower, which project organizers hope will become the park's main attractions. The biomes are the equivalent size of four football fields and will become the new home for 220,000 plants from almost every continent. These are some of the only areas where an admission fee is charged -- approximately US$22 (S$28) for holiday-makers or US$16 (S$20) for Singapore residents.
One of the sustainable features of the Flower Dome is that horticultural waste feeds a massive steam turbine and generates the electricity on-site to help maintain the cool temperatures of the biome.
However, the supertrees and biomes only make up 5% of the multimillion-dollar landscaping development won after an international design competition by UK landscape architects Grant Associates. The remainder of the Bay South garden will pay homage to the ethnic makeup of the country. In the Heritage Gardens, visitors can explore the Chinese, Malay, Indian and Colonial-themed areas and learn about the links between plants and Singapore's history. Surrounding these cultural green spaces in the rest of the 103-acre Bay South park are sprawling areas complete with lakes and bridges.
Launched seven years ago by Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong during the National Day Rally, Gardens by the Bay has been a much-celebrated green undertaking with the other gardens, Bay East and Bay Central, opening to much fanfare. The grand opening of Bay South park area will most likely be another illustrious event.
The horticultural oasis will be a contrast to the country's extremely dense urban environment, forming part of the government's overall strategy to transform Singapore into a "city in a garden."
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