Focus
U.S. homeowners add rooftop solar at record pace to cut power bills
The Orange County Register – August 29
U.S. households will install a record amount of solar this year to help slash electricity bills, according to a BloombergNEF analysis. Residential solar installations will increase by about 5.6 GW in 2022, led by Florida, Texas, the Midwest, and California, according to the BNEF report. Households will add three times more solar this year than commercial customers and will continue to take the lead through 2030, BNEF figures show.
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News
California zoning exemption granted to enable ‘even more rapid’ energy storage deployment
Energy Storage News – August 31
New legislation in California could open pathways for easier siting of energy storage projects by making changes to zoning laws. Assembly Bill 2625, which Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law on August 29, removes the requirement to subdivide parcels of land, which are being leased for electrical energy storage. The California Energy Storage Alliance said the bill would ease development barriers to energy storage deployments in California, putting electricity storage technology projects on the same footing as solar PV and wind.
NREL researchers delve into improving wind blade recycling rates
North American Windpower – August 30
Researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) are considering circular economy strategies to mitigate the impact of wind turbine blades at the end of their useful lifespan. The researchers said that in the absence of policy change or recycling technology development, as much as 78% of decommissioned blades are expected to end up in landfills. Among the factors hindering recycling are high transportation costs and subjective norms, which discourage people from recycling the blades if they see others not already doing so. By encouraging enough early adopters, recycling blades would become the norm.
Avista, Northwest utilities, power trader commit to next phase of SPP Western market initiative
Utility Dive – August 30
Avista Corp., other Northwest utilities, and Powerex Corp., the power trading arm of BC Hydro, have joined the Bonneville Power Administration in committing to the next phase of the Southwest Power Pool’s effort to develop a regional power market in the West, the grid operator said Monday. SPP and the California Independent System Operator are both developing day-ahead markets for Western utilities that would build on energy imbalance markets, which utilities use to balance real-time shifts in electric supply and demand.
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Projects
Federal report boosts plan to remove 4 dams on Klamath River
Associated Press – August 26
Federal regulators on August 26 issued a final environmental impact statement that supports the demolition of four massive dams on Northern California’s Klamath River to save imperiled migratory salmon. The staff’s recommendation, which largely echoes an earlier draft opinion, tees up a vote on the roughly $500 million project by the five-member Federal Energy Regulatory Commission later this year. The project on California’s second-largest river would be at the vanguard of a push to demolish dams in the U.S. as the structures age and become less economically viable and as concerns grow about their environmental impact, particularly on fish. PacifiCorp has said the electricity generated by the dams no longer makes up a significant part of its power portfolio.
California to install solar panels over canals to fight drought, a first in the U.S.
CBS News – August 30
In an effort to combat California’s extended drought, the state will become the first in the nation to install solar panel canopies over canals. The $20 million pilot project funded by the state has been dubbed "Project Nexus." It will consist of an estimated 8,500 feet of solar panels installed over three sections of Turlock Irrigation District canals in Central California. The installation process is expected to begin by 2023 and be completed by 2024. The project is designed to increase renewable power generation, while reducing water evaporation and vegetative growth in canals.
Yotta deploys solar and energy storage in underserved area with CEC Funds
Solar Industry Magazine – August 30
The California Energy Commission (CEC) has awarded $1.23 million to Yotta Energy to develop a solar and storage system to address energy inequality in lower-income areas. The project will include battery backup for a multifamily property located in Santa Ana. In addition to economic benefits, the project will also examine reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, improvements to the surrounding environment, and implications to the existing utility grid by adding solar and storage in a low-income community.
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