solar energy

GRANTS EXPAND SOLAR ENERGY SYSTEMS IN TRIBAL COMMUNITIES

Applications accepted May 1 through May 31

East County News Service

April 19, 2023 (San Diego) -- The Tribal Solar Accelerator Fund: Tribal Facility and Residential Grant Program catalyzes the growth of solar energy and expands solar job opportunities in tribal communities across the United States. TSAF's Tribal Facility and Residential Grant Program provides grants of up to $200,000 for the purchase and installation of solar energy systems.


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UTILITIES ARE TRYING TO STYMIE ROOFTOP SOLAR IN CALIFORNIA

By Dave Rosenfeld, special to CalMatters

CalMatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how California’s state Capitol works and why it matters.

Photo via iStock

April 20, 2021 (Sacramento) - Two years ago, Gov. Gavin Newsom described Pacific Gas & Electric and the events that led to the deadliest wildfire in state history saying, “It’s about corporate greed meeting climate change. It’s about decades of mismanagement.” 


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THIRTY PERCENT FEDERAL TAX CREDIT FOR SOLAR SUNSETS AFTER 2019

Learn about key details to legally claim your tax credit next year

East County News Service

Image via Pixabay

August 2, 2019 (San Diego) - The solar investment tax credit has proven to be one of the most important federal policy mechanisms to incentivize clean energy in the United States and it is scheduled to sunset in the coming months. Those who have yet to go solar are now rushing to take advantage of this federal incentive before it reduces in 2020, then disappears shortly after.


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LOCAL RESIDENTS OPEN HOMES FOR SAN DIEGO SOLAR HOME TOUR MARCH 25, EMPOWERING COMMUNITIES TO DECLARE ENERGY INDEPENDENCE

 

Source:  Sullivan Solar Power

March 21, 2017 (San Diego) Over 17 families are showcasing their homes for the San Diego Solar Home Tour this Saturday, March 25 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The self-guided tours will take place in La Mesa, Scripps Ranch and Rancho Santa Fe. 


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HEAR OUR INTERVIEW: NEW INVENTION BY SDG&E HELPS YOU GO SOLAR FOR LESS MONEY

By Miriam Raftery

 

July 4, 2016 (San Diego) – Recently,  East County Magazine’s Radio Show  featured an interview with Amber Albrecht  from San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E).  The interview originally aired on KNSJ 89.1 FM Radio.

 We talked about a new fast-track process for going solar and about renewable meter adaptors invented by SDG&E employees to help you avoid costly electrical panel upgrades when going solar.

Hear our interview by clicking the audio link below.

Audio: 

Amber Albrecht, SDG&E, East County Magazine interview on KNSJ

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SUNGEVITY AS THE PARTNER OF CHOICE FOR UTILITIES

 

By Roy L Hales

March 13, 2015 (San Diego's east County) - Alec Guettel is back in North Carolina. It has been decades since he obtained his bachelor of arts in Political science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Guettel and another of Sungevity’s executives are staying at the local Mariott, while they oversee the company’s entrance into the state. They will also be attending the NC Clean Tech Summit, where Geuttel will be one of the key people in a panel discussion on February 20, 2015. He took my call in his hotel room. In the course of our interview, Guettel said, “we have really positioned ourselves as the partner of choice for utilities.”


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TREASURY INSPECTION FINDS HALF OF BIG WIND AND SOLAR COMPANIES EXAMINED ARE ILLEGALLY DOUBLE-DIPPING TAXPAYER FUNDS

 

By Miriam Raftery

More troubling issues are coming to light regarding renewable energy developers and their projects. The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration inspected records for 16 big renewable energy companies--and found that half had been double dipping. 

The IRS says that many more wind and solar development owners may be taking money they are not entitled to, Rewire Magazine reports.   Projects subsidized by the federal stimulus program are not eligible to also pocket wind power tax credits.  The IRS says it doesn’t have way to check – but believes that over half the stimulus grant recipients should have audits to take a closer look.


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MAJOR ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS OPPOSE SOITEC SOLAR PROJECTS, WARN OF PERMANENT ECOLOGICAL HARM

 

Anza Borrego Foundation calls for halt to fast-tracking of all major energy projects;

Cleveland National Forest Foundation says EIR violates CEQA, fails to examine less harmful alternatives such as rooftop solar

By Miriam Raftery

February 15, 2014 (San Diego’s East County)—The Anza Borrego Foundation (ABF) and a law firm representing  the Cleveland National Forest Foundation (CNFF) have submitted comments warning of dire consequences from Soitec Solar’s proposed massive solar projects in the  Boulevard community.  Both urge the County to put the brakes on the proposed projects, which they warn would cause irreparable harm to wildlife and ecosystems not only in rural Boulevard, but in Anza Borrego State Park and Cleveland National Forest.


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SAN DIEGO UNIFIED, COUNTY OFFICE OF EDUCATION, AND SOLAR CONTRACTOR TEAM UP TO TRAIN "SOLAR CHAMPIONS"

 

December 4, 2013 (San Diego) – -Nearly 30 San Diego Unified School District teachers are becoming "Solar Champions." Earlier this week, the school district hosted a workshop for those teachers to help them incorporate the solar energy/technology they now have at their schools into their curriculum.

 

Main Street Power is a solar contractor that recently completed the installation of roof-top solar systems at 29 of the district's schools.  As part of its contract with the district, Main Street Power is providing the teachers with training and classroom solar car kits, as well as materials on solar energy/technology that are aligned with the districts' science curriculum. The company is also giving each school a computer that will serve as an "energy portal."


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SDRES ‘INSIDERS’ SUSTAINABILITY TOUR FEATURING 7 COMMERCIAL ENERGY INNOVATORS SEPT. 20

September 7, 2013 (San Diego) - The non-profit San Diego Renewable Energy Society (SDRES) invites property owners, building and corporate sustainability managers county-wide to join San Diego’s leading solar and energy efficiency innovators and contractors for an interactive, behind-the-scenes tour of seven cost-cutting commercial energy solutions during the Commercial Leg of the San Diego Renewable Energy Society's 13th San Diego Sustainability Tour, September 20, from 10 am to 4:30 pm.


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BILL POWERS COMPARES ROOFTOP SOLAR AND THE SUNRISE POWERLINK

 

Originally posted July 27, 2013 on San Diego Loves Green

By Roy L. Hales

I recently asked one of San Diego’s better known engineers, Bill Powers, a number of questions about the Sunrise Powerlink and rooftop solar energy. These are his answers.


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CUYAMACA COLLEGE OFFERS FREE CLASSES IN SELLING SOLAR ENERGY SYSTEMS

 

July 30, 2013 (Rancho San Diego) – For those with a knack for sales interested in joining the emerging green workforce, Cuyamaca College is offering a free course on selling solar energy systems.

The 36-hour course is provided through the San Diego/Imperial County Environmental Training Center based at Cuyamaca College and will give students a working knowledge of one of the fastest-growing segments of the green-collar industry.


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ACTIVIST FILM SERIES: WORLD PREMIERE “WHO ARE MY PEOPLE?” JUNE 22

June 15, 2013 (San Diego) – The world premiere of the documentary film “Who are My People?”, presented by the Activist San Diego, will be June 22, 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. at Joyce Beers Uptown Community Center, 3900 Vermont Street, San Diego.  The film created by Robert Lundahl is about the environmental struggles, indigenous lands and native peoples.  Lundahl and several tribal elders and leaders will attend the premier.


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GERMAN SOLAR EXECUTIVE, NEW SAN DIEGO GREEN LEADERS SHARE VISIONS AT GREEN EXPERTS ACADEMY

By Paul Kruze

May 28, 2013 (San Diego)--A wide range of facets and perspectives of the growing “green energy” industry were shared at a special forum titled “New San Diego Green Leaders: The Road To 100% Renewables” on May 7th at Cricket Communications headquarters in Kearney Mesa.  Kathleen Connell moderated the forum sponsored by Green Experts Academy; East County Magazine was media sponsor of the event. 

The forum addressed how San Diego might utilize 100 percent renewable energy, also focusing on how local leaders can learn from Germany and other countries where development of alternative renewable energy sources is not an option, but a necessity.


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EAST COUNTY LEADERS AMONG THOSE SPEAKING OUT APRIL 15 AT SAN DIEGO EVENT ON ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE ISSUES

 

April 13, 2013 (San Diego) – A growing movement seeks to build awareness of social and environmental justice issues related to energy production. While the world has jumped on the “green bandwagon” in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and use of fossil fuels and nuclear, how much difference are alternatives such as wind and solar power really making?  What are the unforeseen consequences on communities, public health and the environment? Why isn’t the media reporting on these issues?

On April 15, prominent environmentalists and community leaders will speak on local experiences and on growing national/international movements seeking social and environmental justice.  Speakers at the event titiled “Energy Projects, Fracking, and Rights of Mother Earth” include Donna Tisdale, chair of Boulevard Planning Group and co-founder of two nonprofits battling big energy projects in East County,  Terry Weiner with the Desert Protective Council and Solar Done Right, attorney Bill Pate who handled a legal challenge to the Ocotillo Wind Energy Facility, Peg Mitchell with SanDiego350.org and Citizens Climate Lobby, and Carlos Pelayo, Asociación de Jornaleros y Trabajadores de Casa.


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ENERGY EXPERT LECTURES AT EL CAP

 

By Walt Meyer

February 19, 2013 (Lakeside)--New careers as the wave of the future was a key theme in a guest lecture February 12 given by Chuck Brands at El Capitan High School.  Brands is a local sustainability and solar energy expert who is also vice-president of Heartland Coalition and director of its UnitedGREEN division.

Last fall, Brands coordinated a class at Southwestern College to teach a new technology that uses all relevant data to map a building so that owners and occupants can manage their energy consumption and plan to adapt the building for energy innovation. The students were team-taught this pioneering class by experts from across the country under a grant from SDG&E to the Heartland Coalition.


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WANT TO GO SOLAR? SULLIVAN SOLAR HOSTS OPEN HOUSE FEB. 23 IN ALPINE

February 17, 2013 (Alpine) – Sullivan Solar is hosting an open house on Saturday, February 23 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 2855 Via Viejas Oeste in Alpine.

Learn about incentives for going solar.

If your average electric bill is $197, installing a 5 kW solar system is now possible with zero out of pocket costs and new monthly solar payments of $165—less than your current utility bill.


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SDG&E COMPLETES DESERT SOLAR POWER PURCHASE AGREEMENTS

By Miriam Raftery



Environmentalists voice concerns over impacts on desert views and habitat

December 20, 2012 – San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) announced on Monday the completion of two new long-term power purchase agreements in Imperial Valley totaling 40 megawatts (MW) of solar energy. The power is to be produced in Brawley and Calipatria with diverse business enterprise (DBE) participation. 

“SDG&E has made a concerted effort to increase the number of diverse-owned suppliers we do business with in electric procurement,” said Matt Burkhart, SDG&E’s vice president of electric and fuel procurement. “


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SDSU ENGINEERING RECEIVES $3.9 MILLION TO MAKE SOLAR ENERGY PRODUCTION MORE EFFICIENT

Dept. of Energy grant will turn a theory and a lab model into a full-scale testing device.

October 22, 2012 (San Diego) – For the last few years San Diego State University engineering professor Fletcher Miller has been working in his campus lab to prove a theory about a more efficient way to produce solar energy. Thanks to a U.S. Department of Energy grant of $3.9 million, he will now be able to test his theory in a more realistic scenario.

The grant, from the SunShot Initiative, will enable Miller and his team of graduate and undergraduate student researchers to take a lab-scale model and, over the next four years, develops a full-scale model that will be tested at the National Solar Thermal Testing Facility in New Mexico.


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PACE PROGRAM LAUNCHES IN SAN DIEGO: BUSINESSES CAN NOW PAY FOR CLEAN ENERGY INVESTMENTS SUCH AS SOLAR VIA PROPERTY TAXES-- WITH NO UP FRONT COSTS

September 19, 2012 (San Diego)—A new state program to help business owners invest in solar and other energy-saving projects with zero up-front costs launched yesterday in San Diego County. 

The Property Assessed Clean Energy Program (PACE) enables commercial property owners to use their properties as collateral for energy upgrades—and to pay off those costs through their property tax bills.


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NEW RISKS FROM DESERT SOLAR FOUND: BURNED BIRDS, PLUS HAZARDS TO PILOTS, MOTORISTS & MILITARY

By Miriam Raftery

June 27, 2012 (San Diego’s East County) – With over 100 large-scale solar applications pending in the Mojave Desert and more planned in San Diego and Imperial counties, an article published in the Los Angeles Times raises some disturbing questions.


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VICTORY FOR CONSUMERS: CPUC EXPANDS SOLAR NET METERING

 
By Miriam Raftery
 
June 25, 2012 (San Diego) – A California Public Utilities Commission has brightened the future for solar energy in California. In a unanimous decision last month, the CPUC voted to nearly double the number of homes and businesses that will be eligible to participate in the state’s net metering program. With net metering,  Net meter lets homeowners and business owners cut their utility bills by installing solar panels—and get credit for excess electricity that the send to the state’s power grid.

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ROAD TO EVERYWHERE: SOLAR ROADWAYS

By Miriam Raftery

Sierra Robinson also contributed to this report

June 21, 2012 (San Diego’s East County) – it sounds like a vision out of Utopia. Imagine driving on highways and streets made of glass—12-x12 foot solar panels that produce electricity and ultimately, recharge your solar-powered car as you drive. 

No need for power lines or power plants anymore, since roads and driveways will actually deliver electricity straight to your doorstep.

Sound impossible? Think again.  The Federal Highway Administration issued a contract to Solar Roadways, brainchild of Idaho electrical engineer Scott Brusaw, to build the first ever solar Road Panel prototype in 2009. In 2011, a contract to build a solar parking lot was issued--with completion due this September

But a solar roadway can do much more than produce power--and the potential is enlightening.


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KEHOE BILL WOULD STOP SDG&E EFFORT TO HIKE SOLAR RATES UP TO 600%

 


Petition drive launched to support Kehoe measure set for hearing April 24

By Miriam Raftery

April 18, 2012 (San Diego) – State Senator Christine Kehoe (D-San Diego) has introduced SB 1537 to halt efforts by utiliy companies to jack up rates on solar energy producers as much as 600%. 

Daniel Sullivan, president of Sullivan Solar Power in San Diego, says that utilities in alifornia have "launched an offensive on solar producers led by San Diego Gas and Electric. SDG&E has unfairly targeted commercial solar producers by proposing to increase the demand electricity rates they pay by as much as 600%, but only increasing the demand rates on non-solar producers by a mere 52%," he said. To prevent the utilities from derailing our State’s renewable energy goals, Senator Kehoe is introducing SB 1527, which is set for hearing in Sacramento on April 24.


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WINDS OF CHANGE: COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSION TO CONSIDER WIND ORDINANCE APRIL 13


 

“We are requesting a moratorium on industrial wind turbine projects and initiation of unbiased, science-based peer-reviewed studies on health…They are subjecting rural residents to be guinea pigs or lab rats on a mass scale that has never been seen anywhere.” –Donna Tisdale, Boulevard Planning Group Chair

 

“Tapping into sources of renewable energy is critical for a number of reasons…We applaud the County’s commitment to achieving these goals by updating and streamling requirements for small and large wind energy systems.” – Jennifer Purczynski Enel Green Power/Padoma Wind Power LLC

By Miriam Raftery

April 12, 2012 (San Diego’s East County) – Tomorrow (Friday) morning at 9 a.m., the San Diego County Planning Commission will consider a proposed wind ordinance that would make it easier for industrial-scale wind facilities as well as smaller turbines to be built in unincorporated areas—primarily in East County communities. 


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EAST COUNTY ROUNDUP: TOP LOCAL AND STATE NEWS

 

April 4, 2012 --  (San Diego’s East County)--East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego’s inland regions, published in other media.  This week’s top “Roundup” headlines include:  
 
 
 
 
 
LOCAL 
  • Lemon Grove considers downtown rule change (UT San Diego)
  • Fletcher bolts GOP as San Diego mayoral race nears (Sacramento Bee)
  • Former college official, architect arraigned (UT San Diego)
  • Underemployment holding back San Diego economy (KPBS)
  • Candlelight vigil held for slain Iraqi woman (10 News)
  • Redevelopment pigs back at the trough (San Diego Reader)
  • MTS boosts benefits for boss by $20,000 (10 News)
  • Records Suggest Move Against Racist Icon Tom Metzger in Bombing (SPLC)
 
STATE
  • California Legislative Democrats balk at Jerry Brown’s proposed budget cuts (Sacramento Bee)
  • California GOP lawmakers push budget plan to cut state workers’ pay, nix tax increase (Sacramento Bee)
  • Gov. Jerry Brown’s solar energy campaign (Sacramento Bee)
 
Scroll down for excerpts and links to full stories.

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ALPINE AIMS TO GO SOLAR IN RESPONSE TO POWERLINK


Sullivan Solar has vision for Alpine “solar revolution”; hosts community meeting Sept. 25

Property owners can start saving money immediately, with no money down


September 23, 2010 (Alpine) – Sullivan Solar Power, a San Diego firm ranked among the fastest growing companies in America by Inc. Magazine, is offering group discounts to help Alpine homeowners and businesses create a solar-powered community. 

 

“When the powers-that-be such as the PUC, Sempra and SDG&E don’t respect the wishes of the constituents, it’s time for the constituents to declare independence,” Daniel Sullivan, president of Sullivan Solar Power, told East County Magazine. “What we are doing is setting the stage for them to declare independence at a cost that’s less than they would find anywhere else.” 


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FANNIE MAE & FREDDIE MAC CAST CLOUD ON SOLAR FINANCING “PACE” PROGRAMS

 

PACE programs are among the most promising ways that ordinary Americans can spur the economy, create jobs, save money and lessen the nation’s dependence on foreign oil…Challenging economic times like ours call for decisiveness and action, not the fear and disinterest exhibited by FHFA.” – Supervisors Dianne Jacob and Pam Slater-Price, in a letter to President Barack Obama

By Miriam Raftery
 

July 13, 2010 (San Diego’s East County) – Last week, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will not buy or sell mortgages for homes enrolled in municipal solar financing programs called PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy). The programs allow homeowners to spread the cost of rooftop solar and other energy efficiency measures over 20 years, paid as part of their property tax bills.

 

The decision casts a pall over the County of San Diego, which planned to launch its PACE program this summer.


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SOLAR ENERGY RISES IN THE WEST: SOLAR GIANT SILIKEN EXPANDS OTAY MESA OPERATIONS

Company credits AB 32 as incentive for expansion; plans to add 100 manufacturing jobs—and is attracting other green firms
 

By Richard Darvas
 

May 10, 2010 (Otay Mesa) -- Clean-tech industries are a “wave of the future for San Diego,” declared San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders after a tour of Siliken Renewable Energy’s solar manufacturing plant, located roughly two miles north of the Mexican border in Otay Mesa.

Company executives have announced a massive 50% expansion in the clean-energy provider’s Otay Mesa workforce operations.


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READY TO GO SOLAR? “ONE BLOCK OFF THE GRID” RETURNS TO SAN DIEGO , PARTNERS WITH HELIOPOWER TO OFFER GROUP DISCOUNTS FOR HOMEOWNERS

 

By Miriam Raftery

 

November 10, 2009 (San Diego) - One Block Off the Grid (1BOG), the nation’s largest solar buying collective, today announced launch of its second solar community buying campaign to help San Diego County homeowners and small business owners purchase solar energy at group discount rates of $5.29 per watt from now through February 12, 2010.

 


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