Why Are You Participating in SUN?
C OMMUNITY S OLAR W EBSITES AND R ESOURCES Five “Must-Have” Resources:
Readying Michigan to Make Good Energy Decisions: Renewable Energy – In November 2012, Governor Snyder laid out a vision for a “no regrets” energy policy – one that would be adaptable and built on three pillars: excellent reliability, an affordable price, and a protected environment. Four reports were generated from this process:
Renewable Energy, Energy Efficiency, Electric Choice, and one on “Additional Areas” related to energy policy.
These reports can be viewed at: http://www.michigan.gov/energy.
National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s, A Guide to Community Shared Solar is a comprehensive guide for those who want to develop Community Solar projects, from community organizers or solar energy advocates to
government officials or utility managers. The guide can be downloaded from:
http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy12osti/54570.pdf.
Interstate Renewable Energy Council’s, Model Rules for Shared Renewable Energy Programs provides guiding principles that are important when designing Community Solar projects. It can be downloaded from:
http://www.irecusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/IREC-Model-Rules-for-Shared-Renewable-Energy-Programs-2013.pdf.
Clean Energy Coalition’s, Becoming a Solar Ready Community: A Guidebook for Michigan’s Municipalities, September 2013. The report can be found at: http://cec-mi.org/communities/programs/michigan-renewable-energy-tools/solar-ready-community.
Michigan Interfaith Power and Light’s, Renewable Energy Fact Sheet: Solar Aggregation in Houses of Worship, available at: http://www.miipl.org/devwordpress/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Renewable-Energy-Fact-Sheet-Solar-Aggregation-Final.pdf.
Best Up-to-Date List and Info for Community Solar Programs in the U.S.:
Shared Solar Program Comparison Chart where IREC and SEPA are keeping track of Community Solar programs to help utilities and others interested in starting a program of their own.
http://www.irecusa.org/wp-content/uploads/Shared-Solar-Program-Comparison-Chart.pdf Best Resource for Renewable Energy Laws and Incentives:
The Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency (DSIRE) is a comprehensive source of information on state, local, utility, and federal incentives that promote renewable energy and energy efficiency.
http://www.dsireusa.org/solar/solarpolicyguide/?id=17 Best Calculator for Solar Energy System Output:
NREL's PVWattsTM calculator determines the energy production and cost savings of grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) energy systems throughout the world. It allows homeowners, installers, manufacturers, and researchers to easily develop estimates of the performance of hypothetical PV installations.
http://www.nrel.gov/rredc/pvwatts/
Good Resource if You Are a Member of the Solar Electric Power Association, or Know One:
Utility Community Solar Handbook: A Development Guide for Utility-Managed Community Solar Programs – May 2013. Written specifically for utilities looking to create a Community Solar program, this handbook describes the major issues and components that need to be addressed in program design and provides methods to get the process started. These suggestions and considerations are based upon the lessons learned from Community Solar programs managed by several SEPA member utilities. (Members only)
http://www.solarelectricpower.org/resources/publications.aspx#Utility_Community_Solar_Handbook National Organizations that Support Community Solar:
Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC) – Model policies and reports for bringing renewable energy to a community.
www.irecusa.org
The American Solar Energy Society (ASES) – Dedicated to increasing the use of solar energy, energy efficiency, and other sustainable technologies in the United States.
www.ases.org/
Shared Renewables – Committed to encouraging and supporting shared renewable energy projects.
www.SharedRenewables.org
Community Solar Gardens Institute – Helping organize communities to pool their resources and go solar.
http://www.solargardens.org
Community Power Network – Aggregated buying, offers examples and inspiration for community scale projects across the United States. The site includes a wiki to learn and share from other projects.
http://communitypowernetwork.com
Institute for Local Self-Reliance – Working towards the democratization of the electric grid, a network of
independently-owned and widely dispersed renewable energy generators, dispersing economic benefits as broadly as electricity generation.
http://www.ilsr.org/initiatives/energy/
Interfaith Power and Light – Works with faith-based communities on energy conservation and renewable energy.
Published Solar Resource Guide – An Overview for Congregations, providing general info about solar, costs and financing, and several testimonials about congregations in California who have gone solar.
http://interfaithpower.org/resources/solar-resource-guide/
Michigan Community Solar Programs & Support:
Traverse City Light and Power – Active Community Solar Program http://www.tclp.org/Mutual/CommunitySolar/EnergySmart
Cherryland Electric Cooperative – Active Community Solar Program http://www.cecelec.com/content/community-solar
Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association (GLREA) – Providing research, publication, education on Community Solar in Michigan
www.GLREA.org
Michigan Alternate and Renewable Energy Center (MAREC) – Offers renewable energy research and training including Community Solar classes.
http://www.gvsu.edu/marec/
U.S. Department of Energy Resources:
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). "The Open PV Project."
Interactive database providing real-time statistics on the status of solar energy in the U.S.
http://openpv.nrel.gov/
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). "Solar Research."
Information on NREL programs focusing on photovoltaics and solar heating systems.
www.nrel.gov/solar/
U.S. Department of Energy. "SunShot Initiative."
DOE's SunShot Initiative focuses on making large-scale solar energy systems cost-competitive without subsidies by the end of the decade. Offers case studies, policy updates, and news of solar activities across the country.
www1.eere.energy.gov/solar/sunshot/
U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. "Solar."
Clearinghouse page for all DOE solar resources and programs.
www.eere.energy.gov/topics/solar.html
U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. "Solar America Communities."
Learn from the efforts of the DOE's 25 designated Solar America Cities http://solaramericacommunities.energy.gov/
Solar America Board for Codes and Standards
Provides technical information on best-practice code requirements for solar energy systems www.solarabcs.org/
Ontario Community Solar Program:
Toronto Renewable Energy Cooperative (TREC). Cooperative based Community Solar.
http://www.solarbonds.ca/, http://www.trec.on.ca/
Major National Developers of Community Solar Projects:
Clean Energy Collective
http://www.easycleanenergy.com/
SunShare
http://mysunshare.com/