For several months the Grand Marais Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has been discussing the possibility of installing solar panels on the yet-to-be-built public works facility.
As solar power technology has advanced and the price to purchase and install more efficient solar panels has decreased, it has become more common for units of government and private citizens to pursue this application of clean electrical generation.
With that, at the July 20 meeting PUC board member George Wilkes made a motion seconded by Tim Kennedy to ask the Grand Marais City Council to investigate installing a 10 to 30 kW solar PV system for the public works facility. Board Chair Karl Hansen voted with Wilkes and Kennedy to pass the motion unanimously.
In a letter dated July 25, Cook County Local Energy Project (CCLEP) Coordinator Staci Drouillard expressed CCLEP’s desire to see the city install solar thermal for the city’s public works building.
Drouillard also recommended the city hire Jason Edens of Rural Renewable Energy Alliance (RREAL) to provide an assessment of that potential. It was noted that Edens planned to be in Cook County for the CCLEP Energy Expo on October 1, so that would be a good time for him to do the work.
“Investment in energy efficient, cost-saving measures at the outset will serve our community better over the long term,” wrote Drouillard. “There are currently a number of funding options available for adding solar thermal infrastructure including the Madein Minnesota solar thermal rebate for up to $25,000 or 25 percent of the total project cost,” added Drouillard.
In related matters, the PUC has also talked about putting a solar garden in Grand Marais and having members who wish to take part sign long-term contracts to pay for the cost of panels and installation.
At Board Member Wilkes’ request, Southern Minnesota Municipal Power Agency (SMMPA) put together a Community Solar Retail Program offering for the City of Grand Marais.
The program examined small local projects versus larger community projects and the varying ways to pay for these developments. However, after looking at potential up-front expenses, Wilkes said it might be better for the city to take part in SMMPA’s proposed large community solar project slated to be built in 2017.
This project, said Wilkes, would allow SMMPA member communities to take part and spread costs among them. Customers who sign up to be solar participants would pay a fixed price for 25 years. SMMPA’s solar garden is expected to be built in 2017.
At SMMPA’s last board meeting in July, Wilkes, who is the city’s PUC representative, discussed the Carbon Fee and Dividend Plan proposed by Citizens’ Climate Lobby.
The Carbon Fee and Dividend Plan is designed to be the basis for a legislative approach to reducing carbon emission in the United States.
In June the Grand Marais PUC passed a motion of support for the Carbon Fee and Dividend Plan that recognized climate change as a local and national problem and urged Congress to pass a revenue-neutral fee on carbon in fossil fuels. Wilkes, who is also on the Grand Marais Citizens’ Climate Lobby group, has been encouraging SMMPA and its member communities to consider the effects of climate change and address the issues. SMMPA has agreed to discuss the topic further at its board retreat on November 2-3, 2016.
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