City of the future
Making a difference in the environment begins with knowledge and commitment
By Sara Cardine 04/28/2011
In 2006, the city of Pasadena adopted its first-ever Green Action Plan, a set of environmentally motivated goals that included incorporating more renewable energy into the city’s daily operation and reducing demands on traditional energy sources. Five years later, the plan has been largely successful—today, 8.58 percent of the power used in Pasadena comes from renewable sources, compared to only 1.6 percent in 2006. Officials are trying to keep up that pace as Pasadena sets ambitious goals to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and increase its use of renewable forms of energy in the coming decades.
Industry experts admit Pasadena’s efforts are progressive compared to nearby cities, some of which do not have control of their own utilities municipality like Pasadena Water & Power. It makes sense since Pasadena is home to Caltech, which is increasingly engaging in sustainability and renewable energy research that could one day have a global impact on the production, distribution and efficiency of solar power.
On a more individual level, Pasadena encourages its businesses and residents to learn what they can today to contribute to a greener future with the help of PWP discounts and rebates on solar installations that, when used in tandem with a federal tax credit, could net discounts of more than 50 percent. This economic incentive toward progress, coupled with a decline in the overall cost of solar technology, is making it easier for citizens to access the long-term economic and environmental benefits of solar energy.
Citywide efforts
Pasadena has come a long way since it solidified its commitment to reducing its environmental impact in 2006, and the city is pushing itself to meet stricter goals in the coming years. Since the Green Action Plan was established, the city has seen improvements on multiple levels, said Ursula Schmidt, the city’s sustainability affairs manager. In addition to increased water and energy conservation, renewable energy use and recycling, the city is also making headway in its green building program and in an effort to establish an alternative-fuel fleet.
Last year alone, Pasadena trimmed its peak power demand by 4.45 megawatts and saved enough energy to power 3,640 homes for one year. Officials now hope to see a citywide reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of 25 percent by 2030, along with an increase in the citywide use of green energy sources beyond recently adopted statewide standards. Last month, state lawmakers passed SBX1 2, a law requiring that 33 percent of the state’s energy come from renewable sources by 2020. Pasadena is already pushing itself past that benchmark; last year the City Council adopted a comprehensive integrated resources plan that set a goal of 40 percent renewable energy use by 2020, according to Gurcharan Bawa, PWP assistant general manager.
“Pasadena’s preference is to seek long-term renewable energy contracts or ownership opportunities from resources, preferably located within California, that can directly deliver electricity to Pasadena,” Bawa wrote in an
email interview.
Despite the successes, challenges remain. The most difficult goal to meet so far has been reducing Pasadena’s peak load, or the maximum average of energy used over time. This is difficult, Bawa said, “as peak load is driven by weather. It only takes one really hot day for customers to crank up their air conditioning and drive our peak load higher.”
Caltech’s contributions
As the city continues forward on the path to a greener future, groundbreaking science in energy and sustainability is being done in and around Pasadena on college campuses like Caltech, where the Center for Sustainable Energy Research has teams of researchers working in fields related to renewable energy technology.
In July 2010, the US Department of Energy gave the school a $122 million grant to further solar science through the creation of a Joint Center on Artificial Photosynthesis (JCAP). This on-campus program constitutes one of several Energy Innovation Hubs established by the federal government to support scientific advancements related to sustainable and renewable energy. JCAP’s goal is to develop a device that converts sunlight, water and carbon dioxide into a chemical fuel for potential use in commercial markets down the road, according to John Onderdonk, manager for sustainability programs.
“The device is not something that will be a silver bullet [for the energy crisis], but it will certainly take quantum leaps forward toward tackling the issue,” Onderdonk said.
In recent years, researchers at Caltech have made significant strides in the area of solar science. Last year, scientists developed a configuration of flexible silicon solar cells capable of absorbing as much as 85 percent of total collectible sunlight and converting 90 percent to 100 percent of all photons absorbed from the sun into usable electrons. Another breakthrough came this January, when a team of energy researchers designed and built a reactor that could store solar energy using cerium oxide, the same material found in self-cleaning ovens. The hope is that the process could be used on a much larger scale, like an energy plant, to store the captured energy for use at night, making solar energy reliably available on a 24-hour cycle.
Green energy isn’t restricted to laboratories — it’s also being used throughout the campus in an effort to reduce costs and conserve city energy supplies. Currently, eight solar installations give Caltech a 1.3-megawatt capacity that accounts for 2 percent of the campus’ energy load, according to Onderdonk. Fuel cells on campus, which operated using bio-gas made from methane collected at landfills, provide another 15 percent of the energy used.
In his own home, Onderdonk uses compact fluorescent lighting throughout his house and is currently researching more efficient LED options. He’s also insulated the attic and basement areas of his home and uses Energy Star-certified products. “I have to practice what I preach, I guess. I don’t want to get called out,” he added.
Going solar
Solar panels are more affordable than ever, thanks to cheaper technology and a rise in global supply, but their true value is in the long-term energy cost and savings. The average solar panel installed in the city of Pasadena produces about 4,000 watts of power, or approximately 17 kilowatt hours of consumable electricity per day, according to figures from California Solar Engineering, a Los Angeles-based installer and provider of solar alternatives. That’s enough to cover the daily needs of a family of three and enough to save that same family as much as $80 on its monthly electric bill.
Today, while the benefits of solar energy are clear, it is largely commercial interest in large-scale units that have led the trend toward the alternative, according to local solar system installer Jim Jenal, who started the Pasadena business Run on Sun with partner Brad Banta in 2006, the same year the city’s Green Action Plan was adopted. Today’s average Pasadena homeowner is still a little reluctant to invest money upfront, even if he or she knows solar panels will pay for themselves within 15 years, Jenal said.
“Most people know something about solar, but don’t have a deep understanding,” he added. “Our job, as professionals, is to educate folks to where they understand what they’re doing.”
A good solar installer will walk a client through the entire process and will typically bear the brunt of filing for discounts and rebates. Nowadays, a lot of contractors and tradesmen looking to make a buck will install solar panels without knowing much about what they’re doing. This can lead to costly mistakes, considering systems can cost tens of thousands of dollars. A good first step residents can take, Jenal said, is seeing if the area they live in is a good fit for solar. A solar map of Los Angeles County lets residents search addresses to see where panels currently exist, how much power they generate and how much money they save annually (solarmap.lacounty.gov.).
Customers who are interested should look for an installer who will answer questions without the promise of an immediate sale. The North American Board of Certified Energy Professionals certifies solar system installers on two different levels, Jenal said, so customers should look for companies that carry the designation.
“This isn’t rocket science — it’s truly something normal, everyday people can understand and feel comfortable with,” Jenal said.
It just begins with a little knowledge and the commitment to make a difference.
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