California Climate & Energy Collaborative

Solar PV Training Program for City and County Staff

Sarina Soor
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The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), in support of the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office, is offering a no-cost solar photovoltaic (PV) training program for cities and counties seeking to add solar energy to their facilities (on both buildings and land). The training commitment will be approximately 20 hours over a 12-month…

Renewable energy drives California emissions reductions

Sarina Soor
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“Another trend identified in the Near Zero report is that California’s electricity sales declined, which it credits to a combination of energy efficiency and growth of solar PV and other behind-the-meter technologies. However, as greenhouse gas reductions from electricity plummeted, emissions from the state’s other sectors – most notably transportation and petroleum refining – increased…

California extends grandfathering under new TOU rates

Sarina Soor
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“California’s distributed solar market is seeing some tough times, and this includes policy challenges. While the state’s implementation of “Net Metering 2.0” set compensation that is still pretty close to retail rates, it has also involved a mandatory move to time of use (TOU) rates for residential customers. And if utilities lost the net metering…

Significant Opportunity for Local Governments to Grandfather on Solar-Friendly Rates

Sarina Soor
The CPUC voted on Thursday to reopen, albeit briefly, the eligibility window for local governments to secure 10 years of time-of-use (TOU) 1.0 grandfathering for solar projects. TOU 1.0 rates are much more “solar-friendly” than the TOU 2.0 rates that are currently being planned by the major utilities: SCE, SDG&E, and PG&E. To secure the 10 years of grandfathering, a…

Portland General Electric joins California ISO energy market

Sarina Soor
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“The California ISO said Portland General Electric became the fifth western utility to successfully begin full participation in the western Energy Imbalance Market. California ISO said that it and PGE recently completed several weeks of extensive systems testing – the culmination of two years of preparatory work and coordination – and have certified that PGE is ready for…

California Enviros Debate Priorities for Policy Report

Sarina Soor
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“While reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing the use of renewable resources will remain top priorities for California for the foreseeable future, a biennial policy report by state energy planners has some environmentalists calling for even more aggressive pivots — such as phasing out utility-scale renewable projects. The California Energy Commission is taking comments on…

First Green Parking Certification in California Awarded to Cal Poly Pomona

Sarina Soor
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“Cal Poly Pomona has earned the first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) green building certification for a parking structure in California. Parking Structure 2 earned a bronze certificate from Parksmart, which is a component of the U.S Green Building Council’s LEED rating system. Parksmart is the world’s only rating system for sustainable practices in parking…

Greening the ramp: California looks to carbon-free resources to combat the Duck Curve

Sarina Soor
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“As the Trump administration looks to boost fossil fuels and baseload generators, California policymakers are having the opposite conversation — steadily moving their utilities to a cleaner, more flexible power system. Last month, Gov. Jerry Brown (D) signed Senate Bill 338, which requires utilities to consider how carbon-free resources can meet peak power needs in their integrated…

Republican mayor transforms California city into ‘the solar capital of the universe’

Sarina Soor
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“Some cities were hit hard by the Great Recession. Lancaster, California was positively clobbered. In the summer of 2009, the unemployment rate reached 17 percent, housing prices bottomed out, and foreclosures were rampant. Since then, the city has turned things around, thanks in part to the efforts of three-time Republican mayor Rex Parris, who transformed Lancaster into…

Bay Area Solar Photovoltaic Ordinance Webinar – Oct. 23

Sarina Soor
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The Bay Area Regional Collaborative is hosting to the first bi-monthly work session hosted through the Bay Area Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Ordinance program. These work sessions will convene technical experts, as well as regional and local partners as appropriate to assist jurisdictions through the adoption of a basic ordinance, and to provide information on ordinance…

Community Solar Pilot Workshops in California

Sarina Soor
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The California Department of Community Services and Development (CSD) is hosting a series of workshops in Fresno, Los Angeles, and Sacramento, promoting awareness for their Community Solar Pilot Project. CSD intends to make up to $5 million available to fund community solar projects that benefit local, low-income constituencies. The purpose of these workshops is to: Build an awareness of…