Sustainable Systems

Urban Hack: Community Solar

by rochl778

Research

Why community solar

What is community solar

  • Collective array of opanels installed in an offsite location that produces energy!
  • Anyone in that general area can access it and receive credits towards their electric bill

 

Benefits

  • Go solar without installing anything on the property
    • due to space, lack of sun exposure or ownership limitations
  • Save money on your electric bill
  • Support clean, locally generated power
  • Pay-as-you-go subscription options 

How Do I Get Community Solar?

  • Find a community solar project in your area and ask about rates and subscription plans
  • Subscribe to a plan that works for your business
  • Save. Electricity will still be delivered by the utility, and your business will be credited for its portion of the community solar project right on the electric bill.

 

HOW DOES IT WORK

Community solar

Community solar consists of groups of solar panels connected to a local power grid. These solar panels are installed in a nearby community, one with large surface area and unrestricted access to sunlight. Groups of solar panels connected together through this grid implies grid flexibility, which helps bring solar energy (and other sources of energy) to properties without the typical direct access to solar energy. The solar energy from the grid will go towards solar credits, that goes towards lowering your monthly electricity bill. This means that the electricity that fuels your property may not always be the same ratio of solar energy to other sources of energy. For example, in the summer months, you may find more solar credits on your bill because of the longer periods of daylight.

 

Some simple steps to getting community solar energy for your building include:

  1. Find a community solar project in your area and ask about rates and subscription plans
  2. Subscribe to a local project and plan that works for your business
  3. Save. Electricity will still be delivered by the utility, and your business will be credited for its portion of the community solar project right on the electric bill.

 

Installing Panels

 

Installing solar panels can seem like a daunting task, but may be worth considering if you’re interesting in receiving rebates and other incentives for having solar panels on your property. Commercial solar means direct access to electricity, increased property value, and a way to ensure your building is meeting emission goals set by the New York Climate Mobilization Act. 

 

Some simple steps to installing solar panels on your property include:

  1. Check if your roof/property is suitable for solar panels through an inspector or on the NY Solar Map (nysolarmap.com). If it is not suitable, please consider shared community solar plans.
  2. Check with your local municipality for specific rules and regulations for solar panel installation. Typically processes must be completed with a solar installer or contractor who works with you to submit relevant paperwork. 
  3. Understand costs. Costs will vary depending on the project and municipality (look at rebates and tax deductions). Soft costs, such as permitting and zoning account for over 50% of costs. Hard costs include equipment like solar panels. Check NY Solar Map (nysolarmap.com) for more information.
  4. Understand payment options. The three most popular payment options including leasing, loans, or power purchase agreements. Check NY Sun (nyserda.ny.gov) for more information.
  5. Get your solar panlels installed with an eligible contractor. Check their references and reviews and request proposals for your property
  6. Complete the project application (relevant paperwork necessary to install the solar panel system) with your contractor
  7. Get your project inspected and approved by the municipality in order to get credits towards your property’s electricity bill. 

How it works

  • Solar cells, the building blocks of a photovoltaic (PV) system, consists of semiconductor materials
  • When solar cells absorb sunlight, the solar energy effectively knocks electrons out of atoms. The electrons then travel into the solar cell’s circuit to form an electrical current
  • Panels consist of multiple solar cells in a grid, and are wired together into an array of panels to generate more electricity. 
  • This solar energy system can store power in the grid and power the building even when there is no sun out. Net metering also allows consumers to exchange excess electricity generated for credits that lower electric bills

Systems Map

by rochl778

Final Map:

Map Draft:

While creating the map, I found it hard to find specific metrics about manufacturing tea in less-developed countries. This could be due to less reporting in these countries. What I could find was biased towards the Lipton corporation or was not specific enough to certain tea practices. I found it interesting that Lipton aligns itself with organizations to preserve and maintain sustainability. I trusted their sources because of the fact that before looking at their sustainability approaches, the company did not appear to be greenwashing.

Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea_processing
https://twinings.co.uk/blogs/news/how-is-tea-made#:~:text=The%20orthodox%20tea%20making%20method,%2C%20rolling%2C%20oxidation%20and%20drying.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAID_gUolRM
teavivre.com/info/the-making-process-of-black-tea.html
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6024313/
https://www.lipton.com/us/en/our-purpose/our-approach-to-growing-tea.html
https://www.lipton.com/us/en/our-purpose/looking-after-tea-farms.html
https://www.lipton.com/us/en/our-purpose/good-done-by-lipton-tea.html

Kombucha Leather and Mycelium Casting – Progress Report #1 and #2

by rochl778

Progress report #1:

Here are the two photos of my kombucha leather process. The first one is of the tea mixture brewing and the second is of the SCOBY forming in the container. I put the container next to the radiator in my room so the process has gone faster than I expected. The photo is 2 days after I initially put the kombucha in the container. A question I have is do the measurements have to be precise? I scaled down the recipe because my container was slightly smaller (about 5 cups).
 

These two photos are of the mycelium mixture. The first one is the mycelium soaking and the second is the mycelium in the mold. I used a pickle container with a can inside to form hopefully a small little pot I can use for a plant. Question: Are there too many coffee grounds in the mixture? I thought it was supposed to be lighter in color than it is.

Progress report #2:

Kombucha leather:

I plan to create a hair accessory with the leather, overall the process was simple and easy, I think I took the leather out of the tea mixture too early because it ended up being very thin and flimsy.

Mycelium casting:

My casting did not end up working out, I think there was not enough air circulation in the container so a weird kind of mold ending up forming at the top and the mycelium never grew up or at all. I was planning on making a little pot for a plant.

Climate Communications Solution Poster: Grid Flexibility

by rochl778

Our Poster:

(Designed by Angelina Li)

Research by Lucie:

“Smarter, more flexible electric grids can cut energy losses during distribution. They are critical to enabling renewables, which are more variable than conventional electricity generation”

The Problem:

  • Non-dynamic energy sources and grids lead to energy loss and not using resources efficiently
  • With new energy sources developing, an electricity grid needs to be able to adapt to non-conventional energy that is not available year-round. 

The Solution:

 

  • The solution to grid inflexibility + inaccessibility of renewable energy = solar gardens! 
  • Community solar gardens = centrally-located sources of solar energy. They help provide solar energy to homes regardless of suitability for solar panels

Nice facts:

  • Incentive: credits on your electrical bill
  • Little to no costs!