The beginning of February is an exciting time, as sunset shifts past 5 pm. Sunlight in the evening is wonderful for us, and also for the many solar panels in our community!
The City has 18 solar projects operating on City-owned buildings, parking lots, and capping the Rumford landfill. In FY 2023 these projects generated over 6 million kWh of electricity — the amount of energy needed to power about 500 homes’ electricity use for a year. This is equivalent to 30% of the City of Newton’s total municipal electricity use. Plus, producing electricity from solar saved the City over $1 million this past year.
There are over 1,500 solar projects in the City, including about 100 projects that just connected to the grid in 2023. Most of the solar in the City is on individual homes, but there are a number of larger installations at community buildings: the Newton Community Farm, the Carroll Center for the Blind, Temple Reyim, Eliot Church, Lasell Village, Temple Beth Avodah, and more.
Interested in adding solar to your roof? Rooftop solar is an upfront investment that pays off and ends up saving you money over the life of the system. Learn more here. Even if you cannot install solar on your own roof (perhaps it’s too shaded, or you’re renting) you can benefit from the green energy in the region by participating in Newton Power Choice and/or community solar. Questions? Ask an Energy Coach.
The above post was originally published in the the City of Newton Climate News. Click here to sign up for this newsletter.
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