Our system was installed and turned on in test mode on June 11, 2015, and has beeen producing power since.
Reliability
As far as I can tell, the system has run without any interruptions except for a couple of hours when the electricians were on the roof installing the permanent fasteners. In the words any engineer likes to hear - 'It Just Works'.
PUTTING SUSTAINABLE ENERGY & CLIMATE CHANGE ON THE AGENDA ONE DEBATE AT A TIME
Engaged crowds, lively discussion of the issues and stalwart work by volunteer organizing teams have marked the first three of five "Energy, Climate and Our Future" federal debates on southern Vancouver Island.
Why would another pipeline be needed when we’re in the beginning stages of a global transition to renewable energy? That’s what the Kamloops Chapter of the BC Sustainable Energy Association (BCSEA Kamloops) has said in its letter to the National Energy Board (NEB). We invite you to read the attached letter with its two appendices, below.
Project is a joint venture that includes the city, landowner Teck and renewable energy non-profit
VANCOUVER — The builders of British Columbia’s first grid-scale solar
power plant in Kimberley named the project SunMine owing in part to its
location on a former mine site. But the operation is also finding more sun
to mine, exceeding initial expectations for electricity production.
There are dozens of older residential buildings in Victoria with flat, unshaded roofs just as suitable for solar panels as Central Park Strata. If you own a condominium unit in one of these, or the whole rental building - you could do it too.
The solar panels were lifted onto the roof by crane on May 28, and the mounting brackets, ballast, wires, wind deflectors, etc. lifted up through our roof hatch since then.
Connections and wiring are mostly done, and testing is underway as I write this, with one reading of 11,129 watts under bright sunshine at 1:30 PM June 11. It's wonderful to actually see it in place and running after these months of discussion, design and planning.
In March, motivated by the climate crisis, Vancouver City Council took the bold step of declaring that Vancouver would become a 100% Renewable Energy City, obtaining 100% of its energy from renewable sources, and asked its staff to get back to them by fall with a clear articulation of the date by when it might be feasible. The city's staff, in turn, are seeking the public's input, using the hashtag #VAN100RE.
Before anyone installs equipment on the roof of our existing building, we have to know that it will be safe.
Electrical
Of course, the wiring must be safe, but that is ensured by the Electrical Code, Canadian Standards Association (CSA) testing of the components,
the training and experience of our licensed electrician, and the local electrical inspector.
