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Pittsburgh, PA
In this project, Pittsburgh plans to build on its reputation as a national leader in green practices. Its Solar America Cities project will develop a distributed approach to adoption of solar energy technologies. Pittsburgh’s partnership includes universities, non-profit organizations, and the business, labor and foundation communities. The city plans to transform the local solar energy market and stimulate early adoption of solar technology, to show that solar technology works in a northern city.
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Credit:Carnegie Mellon University
Workers install solar energy panels on the roof of 407 S. Craig Street that will provide about 10% of the building's electricity needs.
Credit:Carnegie Mellon University
This rooftop solar array in Pittsburgh converts sunlight into electricity and feeds directly into the building’s main power.
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Activities
The City of Pittsburgh’s long term goal for solar is to meet 0.5% of all electricity needs in the city with solar energy. This planned transformation of the city’s energy marketplace is called the Pittsburgh Solar Initiative. Mayor Luke Ravenstahl has embraced the notion of Pittsburgh becoming one of the cleanest cities in the United States. His dedication to green practices is evidenced by his signature on the U.S. Conference of Mayors' Clean Cities agreement, and his personal commitment to this Solar America Cities initiative. The City intends to work with programs already included in Pennsylvania’s state policy and budget projections over the next two years. The city will encourage adoption of solar energy by residential and small-scale commercial users to demonstrate that the technology works and can lower energy bills.
- Construct a geographic information system (GIS) database for city, county and school properties located in Pittsburgh; correlate data with energy consumption and solar income from property.
- Draft and implement new ordinances and legislation to remove current barriers to residential and commercial solar installations.
- Coordinate and develop a low-interest home-improvement loan for an off-the-shelf solar kit through the Urban Redevelopment Authority.
- Implement a solar installation rebate program for residential and small-scale consumers to receive a subsidy per peak watt of installed solar capacity.
Partners
- Carnegie Mellon University
- City of Pittsburgh (Project Lead)
- Duquesne Light
- Duquesne University
- Green Building Alliance
- Penn Future
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