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Posts Tagged ‘Solar’
Orange County Great Park
The Department of Energy announced that for the first time since the inaugural Solar Decathlon in 2002, the next Solar Decathlon will be held outside of the Washington D.C. Mall. The U.S. Department of Energy announced that Solar Decathlon 2013 will be held in Orange County California next year. The new site is the Orange County Great Park in Irvine. 20 new collegiate teams and hundreds of student decathletes will compete in the 2013 competition. Many of the new teams are joint entries comprised of two to three universities. The Orange County Great Park is the site of the former Marine Corps Air Station El Toro, which the City of Irvine is renovating into sustainable parkland for family recreation.
The U.S. military is the single largest consumer of energy in the world. It’s also a leader in renewable energy initiatives and energy efficiency. The Department of Defense has a goal that 25 percent of its energy consumption will be supplied from renewable sources by 2025. Their recent announcement of Project SolarStrong is a significant step in that direction and will mean substantial job creation at 124 military bases in 33 states.
Energy Secretary Steven Chu
Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced on Monday, August 1, that the Department of Energy will consider change of venue offers for Solar Decathlon 2013. The Solar Decathlon has been held on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. since 2002. The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon is a competition that challenges collegiate students from across the globe to design, build, and operate solar-powered houses that are affordable, highly energy efficient, attractive, and easy to live in. The purpose of the venue change solicitation is to encourage greater participation from other regions of the country.
The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon challenges collegiate teams worldwide to design, build, and operate solar-powered houses that are cost-effective, energy-efficient, and attractive. The winner of the competition is the team that best blends affordability, consumer appeal, and design excellence with optimal energy production and maximum efficiency.
Solar Decathlon 2011, the fifth of its kind, will take place at the National Mall’s West Potomac Park in Washington, D.C., September 23 through October 2, 2011.
Forty years after the Beatles released the song Here Comes the Sun, the USA is putting the sun to work for us, “…and I say it’s all right”. Solar Power is on the move with several important announcements this week.
The White House will now be a solar house … again. Energy secretary Steven Chu and Environmental Quality Chair Nancy Sutley announced that the White House will have solar panels installed early next year. The panels will provide both hot water and electricity. Nancy Sutley, Environmental Quality Chair, stated that the “federal government has to lead by example“.
Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar announced final approval to the Lucerne Valley and Imperial Valley Solar Projects in California. The projects are deemed “smart from the start” by environmental groups and are the first ”large-scale” public lands solar projects. The Imperial Valley Solar Project is expected to produce 709 megawatts which can supply power to 212,700 – 531,750 homes with clean energy. When completed, the Lucerne Valley Project is expected to produce 45 megawatts to power between 13,500 – 33,750 homes. The projects will create 600 jobs during the construction phase and 100′s of permanent positions.
The Department of Interior announced the approval October 25th of the 1000 megawatt Blythe Solar Power Project. It will be the largest solar energy project to be constructed on public lands. Solar projects on publics lands, announced this month alone, will produce 2800 megawats of power for 2 million homes in California and the Southwest.
How about this announcement as we transition from fossil fuel to clean energy in the USA? Ohio Governor Ted Strickland’s office announced that a 49.9-megawatt solar 
farm, the Turning Point Solar project, will be built on the site of a former strip mine in Ohio. Up to 600 jobs will be needed during the construction of the project. The $250 million operation is expected to achieve full capacity in 2014. Solar energy and green jobs are coming to Appalachia.
Here Comes the Sun “sun, sun, sun, here it comes”…