S.F. could be leader on solar energy -Props. B and H being backed by businesses and environmentalists alike

Source: Jane Kay in SF Chronicle 2001.10.27

Even if it is everybody's favorite cool gray city of love, renewable energy advocates say San Francisco has a chance to become the solar capital of the
United States. Fog be damned. City voters are being asked on Nov. 6 to approve Proposition B, a $100 million revenue bond measure promoting solar and wind power.

David Hochschild in front of his rooftop PV system overlooking San Francisco

If the proposal passes, sponsors say it would set San Francisco on a course to produce more sun-generated electricity than any other city in the
country. The city's frequent cloud cover would reduce the amount of electricity generated, but experts say solar cells don't need direct sunlight all the
time to be an effective energy source.

A second measure, Proposition H, would amend the city charter to allow the Board of Supervisors to authorize revenue bonds for renewable energy
and conservation projects without voter approval. Revenue bonds that invest in affordable housing, airport projects and port-related development
already are exempt from the voter approval requirement.

Both measures were placed on the ballot by the supervisors. Both have support of environmental groups and the San Francisco Chamber of
Commerce. The League of Women Voters opposes Prop. H, however, saying citizens should have the right to vote on revenue bonds involving large sums of
money. The league hasn't taken a position on Prop. B. The San Francisco Republican Party opposes both proposals.

Proponents see the measures as a way to generate pollution-free energy with solar panels and wind turbines at San Francisco General Hospital,
Moscone Convention Center, San Francisco State University and dozens of city-owned sites throughout the Bay Area.

It is also being promoted as a way to nudge other cities toward cleaner energy, which backers claim would eventually bring down the price of the
technologies.

A kilowatt hour of power costs 5.5 cents to 9 cents when produced from natural gas, compared with 18 cents from solar. Wind power costs about 5
cents a kilowatt hour. A kilowatt hour is the amount of energy needed to keep 10 100- watt bulbs lit for an hour.

Using a revenue bond -- repaid from the money raised by the projects and not by the taxpayers -- could be the mechanism to even out the cost of
more expensive renewables and cheaper fossil fuels, said San Francisco Supervisor Mark Leno.

"When the city passes Prop. B, it will state clearly that every other jurisdiction across the land can do the same. The demand for the technology will
increase exponentially, at which time the cost will drop as greatly as the demand increases," Leno said.

Prop. H would allow the supervisors to authorize issuing revenue bonds for renewable energy and conservation projects without going directly to
voters. "San Francisco is the only city in California that requires voter approval of revenue bonds," said Supervisor Tom Ammiano, a supporter of both
measures. The city needs the amendment to develop a solar entity that has the authority to raise money with revenue bonds, Ammiano said.

Sacramento, with 8 megawatts of solar power, is now the country's biggest municipal producer. Although Prop. B's $100 million investment would
generate most of the megawatts from wind power, about 30 megawatts, experts say those are only a fraction of the existing wind production. Yet the
10 megawatts from solar would make San Francisco the city with the biggest contribution.

The 40 megawatts would provide enough electricity for 16,700 residences, assuming each uses about 500 kilowatt hours a month. "This is very doable. This would be just a first step," said Ed Smeloff, assistant general manager for power policy at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission. Smeloff was on the board of Sacramento Municipal Utility District at a time when it shut down a nuclear plant and embarked on local solar, wind and gas- fired cogeneration plants. Now, he's measuring the potential for solar on rooftops in San Francisco, including two sewage treatment plants and five schools, and for wind in Alameda and San Mateo counties where the city owns ridgetops and covered reservoirs.

Even under cloud cover, the photovoltaic cells can produce energy, just not so much as during sunny days. "The eastern side of the city generally gets the most sun -- the U-shaped area east of Twin Peaks," said David Hochschild, a coordinator of the pro- Proposition B campaign, including the Mission, the eastern waterfront, Potrero Hill and South of Market. Hochschild uses solar energy to supply about three-quarters of his house's electricity. A 15-by-10-foot system costs about $8,000 with a state subsidy.

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