Press release from the city of Asheville:
Recently the City of Asheville “flipped the switch” on the photovoltaic arrays, commonly known as solar panels, at Fire Station 11 on Rocky Ridge Road and at the Burton Street Community Center on Burton Street. These are the third and fourth City facilities to include renewable energy production. This is also part of a larger initiative to install solar panels on Buncombe County, City and County schools and AB-Tech facilities.
Installation of the solar panels supports Council’s strategic goal of A Clean and Healthy Environment and the 100% Renewable Energy Initiative.
The Fire Station 11 system will produce approximately 44,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per year which is approximately 45% of the electricity consumed by the fire station. The Burton Street system will produce approximately 52,700 kilowatt hours of electricity per year which is approximately 80% of the electricity used by the Community Center.
The electricity generated from the panels will be utilized onsite. When the solar panels produce more electricity than the building needs, that energy will be sent back to the grid in exchange for credits. At night, or at times when the solar panels are under-producing, the City will pull energy from the grid and use these credits to offset the costs of that energy. This is known as a “net-metered” system.
Want to follow along and see how much energy this and the rest of the City’s solar panels are producing? Check out our real-time monitoring web page!
For more information on Sustainability initiatives, please visit ashevillenc.gov/sustainability.
Find a copy of this press release on Asheville City Source.
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