What Has SJVCEO Been up to in September

We hope that everyone is just as happy as SJVCEO that fall has arrived and it is now time for pumpkin spice lattes and sweaters!

For the VIEW Partnership we are embarking on one of the busiest months of the year, energy efficiency awareness month. The partnership continues its long tradition of fall outreach events with hosting four outreach event within Kings and Tulare Counties. These outreach events allow us to connect with residents on energy efficiency tips as well as bill saving programs from the IOU's. We also enjoy that the partnership is able to connect with local supervisors on energy issues and betterment of local communities. Please check out VIEW website for upcoming events. We might just be in your neighborhood during the coming month. We also would like to applaud all of our partner cities and counties on their hard work over this past year. We were able to achieve the partnerships energy saving goal during the month of July. Now we are beginning to figure out the project pipeline for the coming year.


The partnership is also very excited to announce that the City of Visalia has just received ENERGY STAR Certification for its transit building. Visalia is the first partner city that has achieved the status. Way to go Visalia we applaud all of your hard work.

The HDR Partnership has also been very hard at work on finishing projects for the year of 2016 as well as brainstorming projects for 2017. We are happy to say that we already have projects in the que for 2017! We would also like to thank all of our partners who have been hard at work on projects. We are excited to be adding outreach events to the partnership next year. This year the partnership did take part in the conservation fair at the High Desert Mavericks stadium in August. It was wonderful connecting with residents on energy issues as hearing their praise for SoCal Edison. We look forward to participating in even more events in the future.

We would also like to wish all of our readers a Happy Halloween as we will not post another update until the beginning of November!  

A Green Thumb On America's Rooftops

Have you ever looked closely at a map of California? Fresno and Tulare counties are almost dead center.

That is significant for one very good reason. A central location means companies that truck merchandise can reach the bulk of the state's 37 million or so residents in one day. That's why Best Buy, Gap, Walmart, Sears and other heavy hitters have massive distribution centers in the region.

And those warehouses have expansive roofs. Hundreds of thousands of square feet could generate power through rooftop solar, or they could cut energy costs and water runoff by going green - literally.

Borrowing a concept popular in Europe, green roofs - complete with sod and plants - are being planted in New York, Washington D.C., Chicago, Portland and other American cities, according to this fascinating story in environment 360 by Bruce Stutz. The vegetation requires little upkeep, and helps lower power bills and water runoff.

As evidence, Stutz cites a U.S. Postal Service distribution center in Manhattan that has cut storm water runoff into the city's municipal water system by up to 75% during the summer and 40% in the winter. The green roof has also has cut the building's energy use by $30,000 per year.

Chicago has really embraced the concept. That city added 600,000 square feet of green roof last year, and has 600 projects planned. However, Illinois was also the site of an interesting structural collapse when a portion of a green roof fell in. According to this New York Times story, ice could have prevented meltwater from draining.

Portland has a program for residential and commercial properties. “It was a cost/benefit evaluation,” city storm water specialist Tom Liptan told Stutz. “The issue here was storm water. We were trying to find a way to reduce the burden on the city. If we trap it on the roofs, we don’t have to build bigger pipes to carry it or cisterns to store it for treatment.”

Climate and environment help dictate the type of plants to be used, and their effectiveness. Researchers at Colorado State University tested a variety of species and came up with recommendations. Here is a link to their findings, and links here, here and here to studies of regions with Mediterranean and desert climates.

Energy and water conservation in California are becoming bigger issues, particularly in light of stories like this. Maybe making rooftops do double duty would help.

Photo of green roof of U.S. Postal Service building

Water Conference Planned For Tulare

The state of water in the Central Valley, current and proposed policies and renewable energy generation will be among the topics when Southern California Edison hosts a water conference Sept. 29 in Tulare.

The event will be from 8:30 a.m to 3:30 p.m. at SCE's Agriculture Technology Application Center (AgTAC).

Speakers will include California Assemblywoman Connie Conway, R-Tulare; Ron Jacobsma, general manager of the Friant Water Authority; and Cynthia Truelove, senior water policy analyst for the California Public Utilities Commission.

Truelove will be the luncheon speaker. Her topic: "Emerging Policy Frontiers in the Water and Energy Nexus: From Renewable Energy to Funding Innovation in the Water/Wastewater Sector."

Breakout sessions in the afternoon will focus on renewable energy generation. Electric utility incentives, agricultural efficiency, cool planet projects and energy partnerships will be among the topics.

For more information or to register call 1-800-772-4822 or 559-625-7126. Online registration is at www.sce.com/workshops.