In California, utility company Southern California Edison plans to install 65 million square feet of thin-film solar panels. This will be the largest solar installation by a utility company, equivalent to the space taken up by 1,100 football fields, Gov. Arnold says. Rather than usurping Southern California desert space, though, the installations will cover rooftops across 3 counties. The 250 megawatts of power produced will be enough to serve 162,000 homes.

In New York, 27 military buildings comprise the world’s largest collection of solar air heated buildings. Located at the military base at Fort Drum, the buildings will generate over 4 megawatts of thermal energy, displacing over 2,000 tons of carbon dioxide in the region each year. They’ll do so with SolarWall air heating systems, used to heat and ventilate commercial and industrial buildings. The technology, patented by Conserval Systems, qualifies for up to 6 LEED points.

Posted on April 2nd in Solar News by Renee.