The City of Santa Monica has an ambitious goal to become a net-zero, energy independent city by 2020.
Solar Santa Monica is a program of the Office of Sustainability and the Environment.
Solar Santa Monica helps residents, businesses and property owners reduce energy consumption and generate clean, renewable energy onsite. Our Contractor Network is a tool to help you find a licensed,
reliable contractor.
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Coming Next Month: Home Solar with No Money Down!
Mark your calendar now! Don't miss the next Solar Santa Monica Town Hall!
On October 26, we'll be bringing together representives from the companies our Preferred Contractors look to for NEW residential financing options -- options that allow home owners to get solar with no money down.
Experts will discuss and answer questions on solar leases, residential Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) and solar loans.
Martin Luther King, Jr. Auditorium
Santa Monica Main Library
Expo starting in the patio at 6:30
Meeting, with panel discussion 7:00 - 8:30 pm
Reserve your place for this free meetig now by calling Drew Lowell-Britt at (310) 804-8449 or sending an email RSVP .
WATCH FOR MORE DETAILS COMING SOON! |
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SMMUSD Solar Victory!
 On September 1, 2010 the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District Board approved entering into a contract that will result in solar panels on nine of its elementary school campuses, providing nearly two-thirds of the power the schools need and saving the district as much as $4 million over the next 25 years.
"The Board's decision represents a successful culmination of a nearly two-year effort," said Virginia Hyatt, Purchasing Director for the District. "We couldn't have arrived at this point without the support and active participation of a team of dedicated solar advocates."
The City of Santa Monica jump-started the effort in 2008 with a $20,000 grant for a solar potential study and development of a Request for Proposals. The team assembled to select a solar provider included City staff from the Solar Santa Monica program, SMMUSD staff as represented by Hyatt, and the District's special "Measure BB committee," comprised of architects, construction managers, and Board-appointed community representatives.
After a fizzled start, Solar Santa Monica brought the partners back to the table with new numbers and ultimately, the PPA was worked out with Preferred Contractor PermaCity and investment group ReGeneration Finance.
"We are proud to have helped facilitate such an important development for our students and for our community," said Munves. "It tested our mettle and our patience, and in the end we triumphed."
A more detailed description of the SSMUSD PPA process is available on the Solar Santa Monica website. |
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Recycling/Re-construction in Santa Monica
Many of us are well aware of how to recycle a plastic water bottle, but we don't always know how to recycle large items such as old furniture or carpet. "Deconstruction" refers to not only recycling raw materials left from construction work, but also reusing finished goods like a washing machine or table.
Bulky item pickups done by the city may cost anywhere from $25 up to $250 depending on the size of the item. These items may end up in the landfill. However, there are many FREE options you can take instead that may make for environmental sense. Besides donating to the nearest Boys & Girls Club or Habitat for Humanity ReStore, you can offer your materials on Freecycle.org which works just like a free version of Craigslist. The City of Santa Monica also supports deconstruction practices by supplying residents a list of approved recycling facilities.
While the State of California is required to divert at least 50% of its waste from the landfills, Santa Monica proudly raises the bar to diverting 60% of the city's waste. Whether you are moving, renovating, or just clearing out the garage, this is a great opportunity for you to help Santa Monica reach its goal!
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Small office Computer Energy Savings
Taking two minutes of the day to improve your PC power settings can save a load on energy usage. Over time these valuable dollars add up. Apply these tips to your daily routine:
 1. When not in use, remember to turn off your desktop/laptop. Don't just wait for it to go to bed in "sleep mode." 2. If it isn't possible to shut down your PC, at least make sure your laptop or desktop has its sleep settings turned on. In sleep mode, most monitors will use much less energy. A screen saver, on the other hand, uses just as much electricity as if the computer monitor were on and in full use. Applying your PCs sleep settings can be achieved by: START MENU>CONTROL PANEL>POWER OPTIONS>POWER SCHEMES>then set your desired power saving settings. 3. If you have a desktop, go ahead and take it one simple step farther by unplugging from the outlet to save on phantom energy (energy generated when electronics are off but still consumed by the product). Better yet, make sure your desktop's monitor and processor cords are plugged into a surge protector. Then unplug the surge protector to eliminate phantom energy usage. 4. Each window that is open on your laptop or desktop consumes a certain amount of energy. If you are no longer using a specific window, close it. 5. Lower your screen's brightness to about half, saving energy and supporting a longer battery life. It will also reduce the strain on your eyes at the end of the day. 6. Whenever possible purchase energy star computers as they are always more energy efficient. Apply these quick and simple PC power saving tips to your laptop and/or PC and enjoy your day knowing that you've done a good deed by being more energy efficient! |
Large Office/Data Center Energy Management
Increased reliance on digital data by enterprises and consumers is driving a rapid rise in the number and size of data centers (commonly referred to as "server rooms"). In fact, a recent study suggests that the world's data centers are projected to surpass the airline industry as a greenhouse gas polluter by 2020.
One of Solar Santa Monica's newest Preferred Contractors offers consulting on managing the energy associated with data centers.
Per Gary Wilson, President of Zuma Engineering, the growth in data centers is the result of several factors. They include increase in the use of internet media and communications, ongoing digital conversion of business applications, establishment of new regulations that require retention of digital records, and requirements related to disaster recovery.
What is the answer to ever larger, ever warmer, ever more energy-guzzling data centers? One answer sems to lie in "Server Virtualization," replacing physical servers with 'virtual' (software) servers.
The typical return on investment (ROI) period for a virtualization project is six months or less-so most virtualization projects quickly pay for themselves.
If your company has a data center, or is fast developing one, you may want to consider an IT Assessment. For more info, read Zuma Engineering's white paper on our Solar Santa Monica website. |
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For questions and comments, please contact:
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Solar Santa Monica
1212 5th Street, First Floor
Santa Monica, CA 90401
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