Largest Solar Farm Ever to be Built in California

This is great news, but it doesn't sound like the largest planned solar project, unless they just spread it around to take up land space to get the area to be the largest.

http://www.energy.ca.gov/sitingcases/all_projects.html

The California energy board shows that there are two stirling energy systems plants in the final certification stage that are each over ten times this large, and two other solar that are more than double.

Imperial county, San Bernadino, Harper lake, and east Mojave respectively.

I think they've all been approved and are just waiting on final certification.

And there is about 350MW of solar that's been churning out electricity for the past 15-20 years around Kramer Junction, California.

I don't understand the logic of a) purchasing land in the world's most expensive real estate market and b) concentrating the plant, which thereby requires the cost and efficiency hit of distribution.

Why not recruit the owners of commercial, industrial and residential buildings in the service area, and put panels on their rooftops, and operate on a distributed-generation scheme.

A 640 acre plot will be a civic blight, even in Fresno. And once you have the infrastructure to procure, install and maintain panels, you could apply it indefinitely, rather than be done with it when you have filled your acreage. Plus, rooftops are otherwise wasted space, whereas their design will occupy ground level that can and should be used for other purposes.

As Greg Woulf pointed out, there are solar thermal plants in the Mojave that are larger than this project, which means it might be the largest photovoltaic project, but not the largest solar energy project.

The solar thermal plants are collectively known as SEGS.

I was disturbed to read this misleading statment on Cleantech's web site:

"CalRENEW-1 is proposed for a site in the Fresno, CA, area. Upon proposed start-up it would be the among the largest PV solar plant in the United States (as differentiated from solar thermal, which emits greenhouse gases and other pollutants). The project will be a magnet for renewable energy economic development, and will generate significant tax and clean air benefits."

I can only guess they are only considering thermal plants that combine natural gas turbines to provide constant outputs, and ignoring PV production.

the world's most expensive real estate market

... is not California, and certainly isn't the land outside of Fresno.

This is 100% fantastic and I'm a huge fan of building solar, wind, tidal...anything that's clearner than coal. But let's not lose sight of what this will actually accomplish...which is to say, "not much".


Lookit, a coal-fired power plant just recently constructed here in my home town puts out 207of power, constantly. All told its footprint (with the fences and the rail lines bringing coal into it, etc.) it's 150 acres in size, though having been there I can tell you most of that is empty space.


That means a plant 1/4 the size of the solar farm described above generates 2.5 times the power--and will do so day and night, 7 days a week. Solar (and wind) are wonderful, clean, fantastic sources of power and we should do everything we can to use them--and they won't replace coal-fired plants for a long, long time.


Ferretman

they won't replace coal-fired plants for a long, long time.

With an attitude like yours, it makes your statement much more likely to be true.

With an attitude like yours, it makes your statement much more likely to be true.

Now see, did you pay any attention to what I said? I'd match my enthusiasm for and support of wind, solar, tidal, geo-thermal, etc. against anybody's on this site--particularly somebody who attacks reflexively like that. If anything you're the problem, not the solution.

It's a simple dead fact that we'll have coal, oil, and natural gas-based power plants for a long time yet. If you're not dealing with that you're not dealing with reality, and by all that's holy eco-minded folks must deal wtih reality. By all means build the solar and the wind pretty much any chance you get, but don't get snarky with folks who understand the realities of the situation.

BTW, the house I'm building is 80% wind, 20% solar....not a thing from a grid, 100% green power usage. That is how we solve this problem....one bit at a time, over decades.

Ferretman

Now see, did you pay any attention to what I said?

Yes.

If anything you're the problem, not the solution.

"I know you are, but what am I?" Real great response.

It's a simple dead fact that we'll have coal, oil, and natural gas-based power plants for a long time yet.

The future isn't a fact. None of this has anything to do with your boosterism of coal, which is what your original comment was filled with.

By all means build the solar and the wind pretty much any chance you get, but don't get snarky with folks who understand the realities of the situation.

Oh yes, you're so very wise. Cynical defeatism coupled with coal boosterism is wisdom. You're right.

BTW, the house I'm building is 80% wind, 20% solar....not a thing from a grid, 100% green power usage. That is how we solve this problem....one bit at a time, over decades.

No, that's how YOU deal with it. Thankfully, there are people like myself who think more creatively, more broadly, and more positively than people like you.

"A 640 acre plot will be a civic blight, even in Fresno. And once you have the infrastructure to procure, install and maintain panels, you could apply it indefinitely, rather than be done with it when you have filled your acreage. Plus, rooftops are otherwise wasted space, whereas their design will occupy ground level that can and should be used for other purposes."

i completely agree.

640 acres / 21,000 homes = .03 acres per house = 1,306.8 square feet, maybe twice the size of the average rooftop area. so, to supplement the power, build a smaller wind farm. with the extra money saved from not purchasing so much land, provide more solar panels for more homes or, use that money to assist people on becoming more energy efficient...but i suppose that might not be cleantech's mission.

We are told how the upcoming solar farm will improve pollution and asthma. But we hear nothing about what may lie behind the smokescreen. Even under the strictest of supervision and following of guidelines, excavation of sewer lines is one of the worst pollutants known to man. Imagine 40+/- yrs of this carried out unauthorized, without permits or inspections. Additionally, structures have literally been taken off their foundations followed by major reconstruction, also carried out without permits or inspections; in violation of building and health codes. Cross-connecting and re-routing lines. Mold, termites, leaks - asthma, lung, respiratory. It was recently announced that the air in our homes is now 3-5 x worse than it is outside. Is it any wonder?

Before praising anyone for their efforts and concern over our welfare, there are some serious issues needing to be addressed. One of which is the fact that our water infrastructure has been compromised by unauthorized individuals. To date, rather than to disprove what I have stated, the City of Fresno has responded with nothing more than lies, threats and name calling in an attempt to discredit the above facts. Their own (unaltered) records verify exactly what has been done.

The trail of ID theft, missing people, forgeries, illegal conversion of assets is another issue needing to be addressed. The ringleader (former appraiser for the City) has turned this into an even bigger nightmare in order to carry this out. Says his son will soon make a fortune in the solar business. No doubt.

The most powerful PV solar plant in the world is just outside Vegas at the Nellis Air Force Base. In fact it's more powerful than the next 3 PV solar plants combined.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_power_in_the_United_States

Incidently, the 3rd most powerful thermal solar plant in the world is also just outside Vegas.

Great news
We should have done this decades ago

Its stunning how much sunlight is currently wasted (unused) in vast desertic plains while we struggle with 4 dollar gas.

I would like to have a green house, the cost factor is to high. I was thinking about wind power. I have read the cost is about 30k way out of reach, so I am still thinking about other means..