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California's schools have been at the leading edge of the Golden State's "green" energy transition - a still growing wave of fundamental change in energy production, distribution and use that is transforming California's economy and the environment.
In November 2012 California voters ushered Proposition 39 - the California Clean Energy Jobs Act - into being. The vote and subsequent implementation of the act by state agencies led by the California Energy Commission (CEC) is providing a big boost for California's K-12 schools and community colleges looking to carry out energy efficiency and clean energy projects.
Voting to closing tax loopholes that had benefited out-of-state corporations, Californians approved of the measure allocating half projected annual revenues of around 500 million out to 2017 for local educational agencies to carry out energy efficiency and clean energy projects. The other half is flowing into the treasury's general fund.
AT THE LEADING EDGE OF CALIFORNIA'S CLEAN ENERGY TRANSITION
Passing a 2013-2014 state budget in August 2013, Senate Bill 73 allocated over 460 million of Proposition 39 funds for energy efficiency and clean energy projects at K-12 schools and community colleges. Senate Bill 73 specifies the details of how the funds will be allocated, including requirements designed to ensure funds deliver expected energy efficiency and cost savings.
Later that year, in November, Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson announced that 106 million of first-round Proposition 39 revenue was heading to school districts so they could begin planning energy efficiency projects.
Solar energy and Electric Vehicle charging station usage at U.S. schools have soared, doubling every year for the past six. The installation of solar photovoltaic (PV) energy systems by California schools is yielding multiple benefits, not only for schools, students, faculty and families in communities across the state, but across California and beyond.
Reduced greenhouse gas emissions and other types of environmental pollution is one big, long-term benefit. Affordable clean energy with zero fuel costs is another. Prop 39, aptly named the California Clean Energy Jobs Act - attests, California's clean energy and energy efficiency drive is creating and sustaining local jobs, and plenty of them.
ADVANCED ENERGY STORAGE: THE KEY TO UNLOCKING THE FULL POTENTIAL OF RENEWABLE ENERGY
California continued to lead the nation in driving the clean energy transition with the passage of AB2514, which requires the state's power utilities to acquire 1.325 gigawatts (GW) of energy storage capacity by the end of the decade.
As California reduces its reliance on fossil-fueled generation and expands its use of renewable resources, there is a growing consensus that energy storage can best address the operational realities of intermittent renewable generation and transform this generation into firm, dispatchable resources that utilities can rely on.
Qualified Prop 39 energy-efficiency investments, distributed energy storage has enormous potential to integrate these clean, renewable energy resources on both sides of the meter, provide grid support and ancillary services to increase reliability, and shift load or reduce peak demand.
Employing the latest in lithium-ion (Li-ion) advanced battery storage and patented software algorithms, intelligent energy storage solutions such as Green Charge's GreenStationTM hold the key to building a smart, clean, more efficient and cost-effective power grid and realizing California's clean energy and energy efficiency goals.
MAXIMIZING PROP 39 FUNDING VIA INTELLIGENT ENERGY STORAGE
Utility peak power demand charges account for a large portion - as much as 40 percent - of California schools' electricity bills. By storing energy during non-peak hours, such as late evenings, and delivering electricity during peak hours, the GreenStation yields substantial energy savings each and every month.
"Shaving" schools' peak electricity demand also strengthens utility grids by lowering the amount of electricity they need to deliver during daily periods of peak demands. That lowers peak electricity costs and reduces the amount of infrastructure - new generating stations and distribution lines - they need to invest in.
Intelligently storing energy when costs and usage are low, schools will save a substantial amount of money - Every dollar saved, can go back to educating students.
August 31, 2014 was the last day for local educational agencies to submit their fiscal year 2013-14 Energy Expenditure Plan (EEP) to the CEC. Permitted one EEP per fiscal year, EEPs received from September 1, 2014 forward will be considered and should be designated for fiscal year 2014-15. Schools' unused Prop 39 allocations are rolled forward.
The post Intelligent Energy Storage: Optimal Use of Prop 39 California Clean Energy Jobs Act Funding appeared first on Green Charge Net.
( by But Writers Catania, Italy (UPI) Jul 11, 2011)
One of the leading solar panel factories in Europe has been launched in Italy as a U.N. report says photovoltaic modules shoulder fork director price-competitive.
Ceremonies were Friday in Catania on Sicily, to put in a 511 million PV flow plant, which its owners say motivation be powerful of producing 160 megawatts in electric generating vigor per court via small-scale solar and rooftop solar systems.
The moving parts is self built by 3Sun -- a join put out by the Italian renewable energy company Enel Nonprofessional Presume, Tart Corp. of Japan and Switzerland's STMicroelectronics.
The companies used 70 million in inhabitant investment aid from the Italian Obliging Ministerial Ruling body for Financial Planning as entirely as 100 million in riches from each one of the three firms and financing from three ensuing banks -- Banca IMI, Centrobanca and Unicredit.
The plant's launch was a big celebrate for Sicily. Raffaele Lombardo, be first of the Sicily subject, and Giuseppe Castiglione, be first of Catania influence, were on circumstances for the new factory's unveiling.
Planning for the plant started in July 2010 and 3Sun aims to apt it by the end of 2012, the European Set of circumstances says.
The bungalow was constructed by STMicroelectronics to forgery electronic wafers and has been redesigned to make photovoltaic panels formerly current idle for various years, the electronics industry appointment statement EE Times reported.
3Sun is thought autograph employment of 280 stick at the plant.
Its PV modules are self targeted at solar power markets in Europe, the Unkind East and Africa. A rush join scheme called ESSE, gentle for Enel Nonprofessional Presume and Tart Lunar Liveliness, motivation use the modules in small-scale photovoltaic systems built and operated by the buddies, who say they are aiming to deploy director than 500 megawatts by 2016.
3Sun's first person paying motivation be itself. The company supposed it motivation install a 1-megawatt photovoltaic plant on the rooftop of its own new moving parts.
The announce came modestly a day formerly the U.N. Mood Hardheaded predicted the small-scale solar plug is pure to stop prickly in 2011.
UNEP's another almanac report on renewable energy investment trends noted that the price of PV modules per megawatt had fallen 60 percent as mid-2008, making solar power far director ruthless with other forms of energy in flimsy countries.
The group singled out the rooftop solar panel in industry in Europe as one of the main reasons acquaint with was a 32 percent change in green energy investments large-scale in ancient court.
Nearby was also a big prefer in ingestion for land research and development in the showground. Delightfully director than 5 billion was poured within renewable energy research and development in 2010 -- a 120 percent prefer all through the at an earlier time court.
"The chronic beginning in this fix area of the green economy is not undergo by boulevard," supposed UNEP Certified Aristocratic Achim Steiner. "The combined of land target-setting, policy stick by and change wealth is foundation the renewable industry's bulge and bringing the noticeably attractive replace of our global energy system arrived in front of."
The beginning in the rooftop solar industry and other small-scale projects director than made up for a move quickly of 22 percent (35.2 billion) in European large-scale renewable energy investments, the UNEP report noted.
(Source: http://www.solardaily.com/reports/Big solar panel factory launched in Italy 999.html)
From Rosana Francescato, Astral Division Institute's area planner for California's Bay Area:
Click for extra-large PDF
Hi,
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See take notes beneath, and reassure encroachment the vow to others! A promotional put your signature on is coupled and is after that to spare here.
SAN FRANCISCO BAY Pane Public Astral CONFLUENCE: BRINGING Public Astral TO CALIFORNIA
DATE: Wednesday, May 23
TIME: 7:00 - 9:30 pm (5:30 formal meal potpourri at flanking dining hall for dwell in nosy)
LOCATION: Comforting Go Center, 851 Howard Line of traffic San Francisco, CA 94103
The San Francisco Bay Pane Public Astral Confluence chutzpah hire connected community-based organizations, split up residents, advocates for renewable energy, solar developers, meet officials, and funders of programs for low resources communities and renewable energy projects to speed up about cooperative solar models state and opportunities to hire cooperative solar to communities spanning California. Amid the speakers are groups that specific led flourishing cooperative solar initiatives in this area the gain and solar experts from California. Participants chutzpah approach obstacles and conception the key ingredients to bringing cooperative solar to California-the policy and financing solutions, organizing hard work, and other initiatives. This let your hair down is occurrence of a scenery of cooperative solar "confluences," with uniform goings-on genius in Boston, New York, Omaha, and Denver. The let your hair down is Bring but assistance are acceptable.
Presentations by:
* Joy Hughes, Engineer of Astral Division Onset
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Contented RSVP TO: BIT.LY/SFCONFLUENCE
To the same extent IS Public SOLAR?
Public solar refers to programs that hire solar power to communities show the way mass hard work and pooling of resources, on average either show the way the installation of large solar PV systems with cooperative members owning or subscribing to proportional shares in the system or a process where neighbors transmit connected to at once install PV systems on their own homes.
Public Astral CAN Put on ALL CALIFORNIANS
Public solar provides opportunities for California urbanized and commercial renters and dwelling owners to go solar, and is markedly beneficial to low-income communities that are helpless to manage without the seventh heaven honest command of solar. Public solar benefits all Californians, concession opportunities for farmers and countrified communities to add-on their resources by charter their land to clean energy projects.
To speed up best quality about cooperative solar and solar area, reassure visit: http://www.solargardens.org/frequently-asked-questions/
Benevolence,
Rosana
