Bay Area can set example on use of solar power

Solar power, long touted for its role in a sustainable energy future, still provides less than 1% of California's electricity. Yet despite many hurdles, significant solar developments are taking place in the Bay Area - developments that can provide leadership and a model for a national and worldwide flowering of solar.

Fifty years after the invention of the solar electric cell, the industry still relies on rebates and tax credits that are susceptible to changes in the political winds. The lack of long-term certainty about incentives discourages the industry from expanding rapidly. Nobody wants to see a recurrence of the collapse of the solar-hot-water industry in the '70s after generous tax credits dried up. At the same time, a worldwide panel shortage (caused by massive demand from the German solar market) is causing months-long waiting lists and increased prices.

But in the Bay Area, as the result of partnerships among local governments, community organizations, developers, and suppliers, solar is sprouting up all over, in projects ranging from affordable housing to municipal buildings.

Municipal governments are playing a leading solar role. Ever since voters in San Francisco passed solar bond measures (Propositions B and H) in 2001, the city has been a leader in solar power. Last year the city installed a 675 kilowatt (kW) system on the Moscone Convention Center; this year it is building a 250 kW system at its Southeast Water Treatment Center. Generation Solar, a San Francisco program launched by Supervisor Tom Ammiano and the city's Department of the Environment, aims to promote residential and commercial solar installations in the city. To date 300 property owners have signed up for a free site visit and cost estimate, and 21 contracts have been signed. The Department of the Environment's goal is to have 50 completed installations by this September. There are still some critical steps that the city needs to take this year, however, to get moving on its solar bonds.

On Feb.1 the city of Oakland, the Port of Oakland, and the Oakland Coliseum submitted 18 reservation requests, totaling over 5 MW, for solar-power rebates to the Self-Generation Incentive Program, including one-megawatt systems at the Coliseum and the Airport. Due to constraints in city funding and rebate availability, the final installed capacity will likely be less than 5 MW, but hopefully significant. PG&E, Vote Solar, the Rahus Institute, and CASSIA are among many who are working hard to help Oakland make renewable energy a reality.

Smaller cities are also getting into the solar act. San Carlos put a 56 kW system in its Corporation Yard last December. The city anticipates that over the next 25 years, the system will return over $100,000 in energy savings beyond the costs of design, construction, and financing. Last summer Livermore completed a 75 kW system on the roof of its city hall that will prevent 3,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions over its life.

Non-profits are also playing important roles in bringing solar power to the area. Local chapters of Habitat for Humanity are taking a leadership role in incorporating solar power into affordable housing. The East Bay Chapter completed a four-home solar development in the Fruitvale neighborhood of Oakland last year, and is following up with 23 homes in Livermore. Each of these homes will incorporate a 2.2 kW solar photovoltaic (PV) system. East Bay Habitat for Humanity is partnering with the local non-profit, GRID Alternatives, to install the systems using volunteers. Not to be outdone, the San Francisco Chapter is also partnering with GRID Alternatives to install solar on its eight-unit Mission Street Homes development, and the Peninsula Chapter is looking at incorporating solar in seven units in Brisbane.

GRID Alternatives is also using its volunteer model to help low-income families in San Francisco, Pleasanton, and San Mateo County install solar in their homes. To volunteer on one of these solar installations, contact GRID Alternatives at (415) 515-8091 or email info -at- gridalternatives.org.

Another community organization working on renewable energy is Oakland Solar, a small volunteer group of solar enthusiasts dedicated to promoting the use of PV power in Oakland. Oakland Solar's first project is a 33kW PV system on the 48,000-square-foot roof of the Crucible, an arts-education center in West Oakland. The Crucible's main activities involve energy-intensive metal fabrication, so that energy costs are high. A rebate from PG&E's Self Generation Program has been reserved, and installation should begin by spring or early summer. The installation will apply the "best practices" model of the Apollo Alliance (see: www.apolloalliance.org) and will include a cooperative workforce involving the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, art students from the Crucible, and trainees from the local Cypress Mandela Pre-Apprenticeship Training Center.

These developments show a significant and growing demand for solar power. Over 11,000 systems, totaling more than 45 MW, have been installed through the California Energy Commission's Emerging Renewables Program, and the PG&E Self-Generation Incentive Program has received 366 applications for $314 million (almost 10 times the amount of money currently available in the program).

Gov. Schwarzenegger's Million Solar Roofs Initiative was unveiled with the introduction of two bills by state Sens. Kevin Murray (SB 1) and John Campbell (SB 1017). Sierra Club California supports both these bills to provide incentives for solar power over the next 10 years.

Almost all the major solar manufacturers have announced plans for large increases in manufacturing capacity. There is definitely a lot more to do, but if Sacramento can provide a stable incentive climate, and if increased manufacturing capacity brings solar prices down as expected, the future for solar in the Bay Area appears bright!

Tim Sears, program director, GRID Alternatives