California Solar Center - Solar e-Clips

Inaugural Exam for Solar Installers Produces First Certificants [NABCEP] - Completing its first round of national examinations, The North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners announced today that 62 Solar Photovoltaic (PV) installers had passed its exam and become NABCEP Certified Solar PV Installers. All of the certified installers had previously met the prerequisite exam entry qualifications toward certification through a combination of education/training and actual experience in installing Solar PV systems to produce electricity. The NABCEP Certification program was created out of the need to place competent and qualified installers in the field to avoid some installation and maintenance problems that have hampered the Solar PV industry - dating back to the late 1970's and early 1980's when the availability of federal tax credits for solar PV systems was quite high. With the ever increasing number of states with System Benefit Charges and corresponding funding for solar PV systems, providing a qualified workforce adhering to standards of safety and design is critical. NABCEP's program is built upon its Task Analysis - a standard set of skills and abilities necessary to install a quality solar PV system. It includes the National Electrical Code and OSHA guidelines for safety and quality. The next national NABCEP Certified Solar PV Installer exam is scheduled to take place on April 17, 2004. Applications must be sent in to NABCEP by January 8th to be eligible. Those who did not pass the exam are encouraged by NABCEP to take it again - and do not have to complete the exam application again. All that is required is payment of the reexamination fee of $150. The listing of NABCEP Certificants as well as additional information about the NABCEP program can be found at: www.nabcep.org

A Holiday Ode to the Energy Bill [Clean Energy Chorus]- WASHINGTON (December 17, 2003) – In the spirit of the holidays, the "Clean Energy Chorus" – carolers from various environmental organizations – will visit Capitol Hill legislative offices today to remind lawmakers that the energy bill is a gift to corporate polluters. The bill stalled in Congress due to a filibuster threat, but the National Journal reports that high-level Bush administration officials met earlier this month with gas, oil, mining and nuclear lobbyists to discuss strategy for persuading senators to vote for the measure when Congress reconvenes next year. Below is what the "Clean Energy Chorus" will be singing (following each verse is useful background information). [For the complete lyrics and to listen online to "On the first day of Congress, the White House gave to me...…A POLLUTER'S BILL FOR EN-ER-GY"... click here]

New CEC Emerging Renewables (PV Rebate) Guidebook online - incorporating the new rebate levels ($3.20/watt) starting on January 1, 2004... the new guidelines are available now online from the California Energy Commission. Information on submitting reservations before 12-31-03 to secure the higher rebates is provided here.

CEC RE Program gains Exemption from Governor's Freeze - Good news! The California Energy Commission's Renewable Energy Program received an exemption to Executive Order S-4-03 from the Department of Finance today. For Emerging Renewables Program participants this means the resumption of rebate reservation approvals. Program staff had not been able to send out reservation confirmations since December 5, 2003 while the exemption request was under consideration by the Department of Finance. Reservations ready for approval will be processed. Payment claims for reservations confirmed before December 5, 2003 were unaffected by the Executive Order and will continue to be processed. [source: email Dale Trenschel CEC RE Program 2003.12.23]

The Top 50 PV Systems in the World - check out the largest systems in the world. click here.

Inspector Guidelines for PV Systems - The Inspector Guidelines have been prepared for the Renewable Energy Technology Analysis Project of the Pace University Law School Energy Project. The document was prepared by Bill Brooks, Endecon Engineering, with input and review from subject matter experts and inspectors. Installers of solar electric systems often cite local permitting as a barrier to the growth of the industry. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the process of obtaining local approval for such systems can be cumbersome, costly, time consuming and quite variable with requirements differing from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.The purpose of these guidelines is to provide a potential means of making permitting costs and procedures easier, faster, and less expensive. Last June, the Interstate Renewable Energy Council, along with Pace University, held a meeting in Austin with state stakeholders to discuss these guidelines. Since then, IREC, Pace, Endecon Engineering, and the Florida Solar Energy Center have been meeting and working on the guidelines and discussing ways of introducing these guidelines to inspectors to make them a matter of standard practice. We now ask for your help. Please contact your local inspectors and give them a copy of the guidelines. They’ve been written and formatted to be a useful instructional and field tool. IREC and FSEC are also working on an instructional CD for code officials and inspectors. We plan to release it during the first quarter of 2004. We’ll send out a notice when it’s available. A good companion piece to these guidelines is the “Connecting to the Grid – A Guide to Distributed Generation Interconnection Issues.” click here for contact information and to download the guidelines

Solar Array provides pumping power and shade on Farm [Lehr Brothers - Edison] - A 10,000-square-foot, 120kW solar array, now powers a 350hp pump for Lehr Brothers Inc., a potato and citrus grower in Edison, California. The pump is tied to the electric grid, and is used for processing potatoes at the Lehr Brothers' packing facility. Shown in this image, the array is installed on a carport that also providees shade for farm equipment. WorldWater designed and installed the system, which included Kyocera Solar panels.

SPV - the security photovoltaic market - Natural disaster, blackout, terrorist strike - photovoltaics can provide the necessary power. Yet in spite of PV's long-standing role in a variety of applications related to security, the industry still markets security-oriented products as 'industrial products'. If the industry and PV market analysts were to consider 'security' as an independent market segment it would focus attention on developing PV security applications and products, and on marketing them as such (authors Peter Varadi and Gerry Braun on JXJ Renewable Energy World website/magazine, October 2003) click here to read the complete story...

Cerro Coso College Announces Winner of One Megawatt PV Contract - Cerro Coso College has announced an award by the Board of Trustees of Kern Community College District for a solar photovoltaic construction contract to Contra Costa Electric of Bakersfield, California. The awarded contract amount was $8,963,053 for the one Megawatt system. The system is by far the largest such system for a Community College. Construction is slated to start immediately following initial insurance and bond submissions and is currently projected for completion in June 2004. The original request for bid antipated the requirement for general project design for a 6.5 acre installation of ground mounted modules and a free-standing concrete block building that would house the inverters and distribution equipment. A total of five bids had been received for the project. The project is expected to receive a rebate check of around $4.5 million under the California Public Utilities Commission, as adminstered in the region by Southern California Edison.

Marine Corps Base Installs 1.1 MW Solar Power System [Twentynine Palms, CA]- One of the largest solar power systems in the country is now online at a U.S. Marine Corps base in Twentynine Palms, California. The Marine Corp base installed a 1.1-megawatt photovoltaic system, which will provide about 10 percent of the base's electrical needs. The project earned a $4.5 million incentive award from the state's Self Generation Incentive Program. source: press release 2003.11.20

Green Power Tag Report available - The 2nd Edition of Energy Info Source’s Green Power Tags Report is a definitive 90-page study of the international green tag market. The report takes a comprehensive look at what green tags are, how they work, the role they can play in spurring renewable energy development, the different models for implementing green tags, government programs in support of green tags, current offerings of green tag suppliers, and customer purchases of green tags. The Green Power Tags Report comes in Adobe Acrobat PDF format and is available via email, CD Rom or Hardcopy for $249.

New CEC Renewable Energy Reports Available Online - The California Energy Commission has posted several new Renewable Energy reports online, including- 1) Renewable Energy Program - Annual Project Activitiy Report to Legislature (with details of the rebate program), 2) Renewable Resources Development Report. (includes include legislative requirements, renewable energy technologies, situation analysis, renewable resource technical potential, California's Renewable Portfolio Standard, renewable resource assessment, benefits and challenges of renewable resource development, policy issues, and research on renewable energy.), and 3) Final - 2003 Integrated Energy Policy Report

Pierce College launches Green Power Program [Woodland Hills, CA] - Pierce College in Woodland Hills launched an extensive green power program, a key component of which is a new solar electric parking system and microturbines that will reduce its outsourced energy use by half. Pierce College President Rocky Young dedicated the new on-site 191 kW solar generation system designed and built by PowerLight Corporation and covering 20,000 square feet. Said Young, "Pierce College is proud to celebrate the first step in our efforts to transform our college into a more environmentally friendly, clean campus. Our environmental leadership will help preserve the beauty of our campus and the surrounding community, improve efficiency, reduce emissions and save taxpayer dollars." source: press release 2003.11.20

Schools: Igniting Creative Energy Challenge - The year 2004 is just around the corner and with it is still the great opportunity to participate in the exciting Igniting Creative Energy Challenge! There is still plenty of time for you and your students to participate in this unique student competition. The Challenge promotes energy conservation, environmental stewardship and leadership. It also encourages our young people to take positive action in finding solutions to many important issues.The Grand Prize for this year's Challenge is a hosted trip to Hawaii for the educational trip of a lifetime. This journey "from the center of the earth to the outer universe" will include visits to Volcano National Park, a world-renowned observatory, tropical forests, and Hawaii's black sand beaches. The estimated retail value of a Grand Prize trip is $3,500 - $4,000, depending on airline fares. Winners will also have the chance to participate in the National Energy Efficiency Forum in Washington D.C., June 15 - 16, 2004, where they will share their Challenge entries and ideas with government and energy leaders. Three students and one teacher will be awarded these amazing opportunities, along with a family member or guardian to accompany each winner. To learn more about the Ignite Your Creative Energy Challenge, please visit www.ignitingcreativeenergy.org. The deadline to enter is February 21, 2003.

Schools: New Renewable Energy Guidebook available - Educators for the Environment has released a new renewable energy resource guide, called "Energy for Keeps - Electricty from Renewable Energy." A comprehensive renewable energy publications for middle and high school education. download for free or order a copy at http://www.energyforkeeps.org/

Events

Winter Course: Photovoltaic System Design and Installation - Diablo Valley College -Pleasant Hill, CA - Teacher Tom Chatagnier continues his very affordable classes on renewable energy. This course covers photovoltaic systems, site evaluation, configuration options, installation options, performance testing and maintenance. This course includes many 'hands on' activities working with real equipment. Spring 2004 schedule (Sign UP NOW): Jan. 17- March 20, 2004 Saturdays 8:30 am - 2:20 pm www.dvc.edu (search under Alt technologies) for info and registration or 925/685-1230 x 2522

2004.2.20-26 Icelandic Tour - Northern Lights and Renewable Energy society [Joe Jordan] - Joe Jordan (NASA/Ames Research Center and the SETI Institute, Cabrillo College and the Monterey Institute for International Studies) will lead a trip to Iceland, February 20-26, 2004, focusing on the aurora borealis ("northern lights") as well as on the bright future for renewable energy ("sky power"!) -- which Iceland is helping to realize right now with their great geothermal power resources and their plans for becoming the world's first hydrogen economy. We'll go into hot springs such as the famous Blue Lagoon resort, visit glaciers and geysers, and revel in the remarkable scenery of this rather exotic locale. (And since Iceland is on the Gulf Stream, the climate there is surprisingly moderate even in February.)
For more info., go to <http://www.sky-power.org> and/or <http://www.melitatrips.com/iceland/iceland-2004.html>.

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