Energy Access Innovation Out of Grand Junction, Colorado

Over the next two days, Grand Valley Power (GVP), an electric cooperative utility, and GRID Alternatives, the nation’s largest non-profit solar installer, will complete installation of the country’s first utility-sponsored community solar array serving low-income households. The 29-kilowatt array will provide low-cost solar power to eight hardworking families in GVP’s service area and serve as a national model for clean energy access. The installation, which broke ground in March, is being completed during GRID Alternatives Colorado’s Community Solarthon event with help from over 100 community volunteers and job trainees. “GRID is also able to deliver community solar projects with a substantial return on investment. There is a 4-6 year payback in energy savings for the families participating in this program for every dollar invested by Grand Valley Power and our community partners.” “Why are we doing this?” says Tom Walch, GVP’s General Manager. “We believe that solar powered generation is an idea whose time has come. Community solar is the best way to harness this developing technology. Unfortunately, many consumers don’t have access to this kind of clean renewable energy resource, even though they help fund its development for others. Our partnership with GRID reverses the flow of subsidies and incentives. With this project, assistance will flow to folks who need it most.” Each of the eight participating families will see a utility bill reduction of around 50 percent. They will contribute 16 hours of sweat equity to support the project’s development, and pay a small per kilowatt hour fee to help support future projects. With this unique model, subscribers will be able to experience the on-bill savings whether they own their home or rent – no roof space is required. The array is expected to generate over $100,000 in electricity bill savings for participants over the next 20 years, helping families in need while helping the utility meet its renewable energy goals. “When planning to meet Colorado’s renewable energy goals, it is important to keep underserved communities a main part of the conversation,” shares Chuck Watkins, GRID Alternatives Colorado Executive Director. “GRID is also able to deliver community solar projects with a substantial return on investment. There is a 4-6 year payback in energy savings for the families participating in this program for every dollar invested by Grand Valley Power and our community partners.” The model has generated interest from utilities and policy-makers across the country, and Grand Valley Power and GRID Alternatives were invited by United States Congressman Jared Polis to brief a congressional working group on Innovation in Alternative Energies on May 6. GRID Alternatives Colorado is providing the materials, design and program development expertise to build the solar array, with equipment donations from SunEdison, Enphase and IronRidge. Grand Valley Power is providing the site, interconnection facilities and administrative support for the project. Other partners and sponsors include Housing Resources of Western Colorado, which helped identify consumers most in need of assistance, Alpine Bank, NREL, Atlasta Solar, Whitewater Building Materials, and SunPower Corp.

Calling all Volunteers! Community Solarthon Opportunities Available

On May 29th and 30th, GRID Alternatives and Grand Valley Power will continue their strong and unprecedented partnership while installing the first-ever community solar array dedicated 100% to low-income subscribers. Community Solar projects are large scale, ground-mounted photovoltaic system brought about through partnerships with local utility companies. By increasing the size of the solar systems GRID volunteers install, we will better be able to serve greater numbers of clients by reducing qualifications and increasing energy output. To ensure this projects success, we are calling upon you to join us on site! GRID has set aside a limited number of volunteer shifts with no donation required for community members and solar advocates- to reserve your spot on this exciting project, sign up through the Volunteer Portal. These opportunities will be posted directly to the Volunteer Portal on Wednesday, May 6th at exactly 10:00AM. GRID is currently seeking both Event and Construction Volunteers to assist during the two day installation. Community Solarthon Event Information: Install will take place at GVP's existing Solar Garden located in Grand Junction, CO The 29kW ground-mounted array will serve 7 to 10 GRID Alternatives' Clients 100% of the array's output will be dedicated to low-income subscribers Each Install day is broken into 2 shifts: AM shift- 7:30am to 11:30pm PM shift- 12:30pm to 4:30pm Volunteers, community members, clients, businesses, and anyone interested are invited to attend the Solarthon Celebration Lunch taking place on Saturday, May 30th 11:30am- 12:30pm If you have not yet volunteered with GRID but are interested in participating in Community Solarthon, call Bobby as soon as possible to schedule a volunteer orientation! Questions? Please call Bobby at (303) 968-1327 or email rkirby@gridalternatives.org

Nation's First Solar Garden Helping Low-Income Families

There are dozens of solar gardens scattered through Colorado. Grand Junction is soon going to be considered part of that list. However with an exception, as the nation’s first community solar gardens helping low-income families save up to almost 90 percent on their electricity bill. This is a partnership with Grand Valley Power, GRID Alternatives and Housing Resources of Western Colorado. These organizations will be installing a 29kW array or row of solar panels; able to help six to 10 low-income families. This is a four-phase project and Brenda Lange and Herbert Sanders is the first family to sign up for the program hoping to save money. “I’ve checked into solar and it was 15 grand for this house,” said Lange. Sanders owned two companies, however that soon changed. “We based on our revenue on national and international clients and after 9/11 they stopped spending money and after three years of trying to save two companies didn’t work,” said Sanders. After calculating his savings; Sanders says he will probably say $60.00 to $70.00 on his electricity bill, which they will use to fuel their vehicles. The second phase once approved is to install another 29kW array able to power another 33 homes in the Grand Valley. Next year, Grid Alternatives is hoping to expand this low-income program to develop a 1-mega watt of solar electricity capacity able to serve 330 customers. Recently, Grand Valley Power met with other solar and electric energy leaders in Washington D.C. to speak about the program. “So often projects like this just get lost in bureaucracy and one of the things I asked them to do is to consider providing block grants to the states so the states can administer projects like this,” said Grand Valley Power general manager Tom Walch. Organizers will be putting up the solar panels on May 29 and 30 expecting to have 100 volunteers helping. Grid Alternatives is having a Community Solarthon on May 30 at the site located at 714 29 Road Grand Junction. A Solarthon tours will be given from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. there will be a community celebration lunch.

Commercial-scale solar doing well in Colorado county, officials say

LAMOSA — Commercial-scale solar farms want to keep growing in Alamosa County, with companies hoping to beat a December 2016 deadline for a federal tax credit that has been driving substantial solar development in recent years. The Alamosa County Land Use Department has held meetings about expansion with Iberdrola Renewables, First Solar and Next Era, said Rachel Baird, the department's deputy administrator. That's in addition to the multiple phone calls received from other major developers in the last few months, Baird said. Together, the facilities generate 87 megawatts of electricity, which is enough to power more than 15,000 homes in Colorado and generate more than $500,000 in tax benefits. In Colorado, it only takes six to nine months to obtain a permit, compared with up to two years in other states, the Alamosa Valley Courier reported. In addition to encouraging development, the county needs to pay for extra services to help the solar companies, Alamosa County Chairman Darius Allen said. Bringing the facilities to the county is a difficult task, requiring extra staff hours to complete the permit process, officials said. Utility-scale solar projects have been generating reliable, clean energy with a stable fuel price for more than two decades, officials said. What distinguishes utility-scale solar is the fact that the electricity is sold to wholesale utility buyers, not consumers. Utility-scale solar plants provide electricity during periods of peak demand when electricity from fossil fuels is the most expensive, supporters of solar energy said.

Colorado Energy Expo

Colorado's second annual Energy Expo is set for Wednesday at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The expo consists of 3,000 to 5,000 energy-industry leaders, the general public and students. More than 650 students from high schools all over the Front Range are attending some forums where they will learn about a variety of energy careers and pathways to those careers. The energy industry is an incredible driver of our state's economy. In 2014, the Colorado energy industry accounted for more than 250,000 direct and indirect jobs, with a $15.6 billion economic impact. Colorado is No. 1 state in the nation for wind-energy manufacturing, with over 3,000 Vestas manufacturing jobs alone. Colorado is No. 3 nationally for overall wind-energy employment, with nearly 7,000 jobs. Colorado is a national leader in renewable energy installed capacity, ranking seventh in installed solar and 10th in installed wind. Colorado is a national leader in renewable energy installed capacity, ranking seventh in installed solar and 10th in installed wind. In 2014, Colorado produced an estimated 94 million barrels of oil, which is a new state record and a 45% increase over 2013. In 2013, Colorado ranked eighth in oil production with 64 million barrels, and ranked sixth in natural gas production with 1.5 tcf. Colorado is No. 9 in fossil fuel employment concentration and No. 6 national in cleantech employment concentration. The fossil fuel average salary is $102,470 and the cleantech average salary is $77,350.

The North Fork Valley makes big moves to grow the solar industry

PAONIA, Colo. Solar Energy International launches a project to grow a new energy production industry in the North Fork Valley. The “Solarize the North Fork Valley” campaign aims to convince residents of Paonia, Hotchkiss, and Crawford to power their homes entirely through solar panel technology. By creating of a demand for solar panel installations throughout the area, Solar Energy International believes they can create local job opportunitiesfor this struggling economy. Tara Miller and her husband are experienced solar users and will serve as ambassadors for the campaign. “The sun is going to keep shining, the installation takes labor,” says Tara Miller. The launch of the education program has already created seven positions at Solar Energy International and they hope to see this trend carry over into the installation sector. Residents interested in going solar can sign up for the “Solarize the North Fork Valley” campaign at the Western Colorado Climate Challenge and Solar Fair in Paonia or contact Solar Energy International directly at (970) 527-7657. Other solar campaigns such as the Switch 2020 Contract will also be presented at the solar fair.

WESTERN COLORADO CLIMATE CHALLENGE & SOLAR FAIR, Paonia, CO

The Western Colorado Climate Challenge is a forum where people can learn, engage, devise and take steps to solve local issues related to the climate crisis.No longer can we stand-by without taking responsibility. Neither can we wait until policy and legislation catches up with our circumstances.This is truly the time when the people must lead. The day has arrived when each of us can be responsible for how we energize our lives, how we reduce our own consumption, lessen our own footprint. YOUR IDEAS ARE GOING TO PAVE THE WAY TO REAL CHANGE IN COLORADO! We are bringing a diverse group of people together from all over Western Colorado. We are going to meet, focus on our challenges and hash out a firm action plan to change the course our future. We look forward to you joining us! Friday Solar Fair – Free & Open to Public at SEI ●Hosted by Solar Energy International and launching SEI’s long-awaited Solarize North Fork project ●Exhibits from area businesses and organizations ●Light refreshments, cash bar with local beer, wine, hard cider and organic juices ●Live Music: featuring Brodie Kinder & The Killer Bees and other Special Guests Friday Program (@ Solar Fair) ●Welcome & About the Climate Challenge Weekend – Pete Kolbenschlag, Mountain West Strategies ●Switch 2020 & Colorado Climate Summit – Robert Castellino with Climate Colorado and Switch 2020 ●SEI – Solarize North Fork Valley – Kristen O’Brien with Solar Energy International/Solarize North Fork project ●Western Colorado Climate Challenge – Re-Cap & Introducing the Challenges – Robert, Kristen, Pete Saturday Program: ●Panel Discussion: Breaking Barriers, Creating Collaboration for Local Power Generation Led by John Gavan, Delta Montrose Electric Assoc. with Del Worley, Holy Cross Electric Assoc; Mona Newton, Community Office for Resource Efficiency; ●Presentation: Water, Western Colorado and Climate Change By Dr. Gigi Richard, The Water Center at Colorado Mesa University Saturday Breakouts (4 challenges) ●Switch 2020: Moving Colorado to Renewables and Minimizing Water Use – Climate Colorado Leader: Robert Castellino, Colorado Climate Summit Issue: The Climate Crisis requires decisive and immediate action, which often seems too large and unworkable to address. Challenge: How to motivate individuals, businesses, and governments to make commitments to move toward net zero and drastic reduction in water use? What are the actions and deliverables needed to engage communities across Colorado for these changes to occur within the next ten years? ●Rural Solarization – Solar Energy International Leader: Kristen O’ Brien, Solarize North Fork Project; Ed Marston, Board President Solar Energy International Issue: Rural solarization is impeded by isolated, often economically disadvantaged populations, outdated policy, and a public unaware of available programs and/or financing that makes sense. Challenge: Maximizing opportunities to promote and implement solarization in small, economically diverse, and dispersed rural communities. ●Regional Collaboration for Local Generation – ‘Community Challenge’ Leader:John Gaven, DMEA Board Member Issue: Opportunities abound for local power generation, but outdated federal, state and utility policies, lack of project financing, and other obstacles seem to block development, local innovation and installation. Challenge: What collaborations make local power generation feasible and gets more installed? ●Rivers & People Need Water- Gunnison River & Water Management in the Drying West Leader: Sarah Sauter, Western Slope Conservation Center Issue:In a drying American West, the Gunnison River is a major tributary to an over-allocated resource: the Colorado River. It is also a critical environmental and human resource – already part of the Colorado River Storage Project (Aspinall Unit) and utilized extensively for local irrigation, it also provides recreation, abundant agricultural return, and downstream flows for fish, wildlife and other users. Challenge:How can water users and residents in the Gunnison Basin implement changes to conserve and secure our water resources? http://climatecolorado.org/western-slope-climate-challenge-2015/