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As part of the GroSolar
dealer training, we
were taken on a tour of Evergreen
Solar's Marlborough Massachusetts
Manufacturing plant.
Despite the fact that Evergreen's Marlborough
plant is a research and development center,
it produces approximately 15 kilowatts of
solar panels a year. The plant is highly
automated and fun to watch (I wasn't allowed
to take pictures). Shortly, Evergreen will be
opening another manufacturing facility in
Devens, MA. It will be substantially larger
and even more automated.
The most interesting thing about Evergreen
solar panels is the manufacturing process.
With their process, the silicon wafers are
grown in long sheets then cut to size. Why is
this interesting?
Traditional solar panel manufacturers start
with large block of silicone and cut the
cell-sized wafers off a slice at a time.
Unfortunately, this process is dirty,
wasteful, and uses a lot of energy.
Since Evergreen, in effect, grows their solar
cell material, they use much less energy. In
fact, Evergreen solar panels have the lowest
carbon footprint per watt of panel of any
manufacturer. Furthermore, the panels rated
power is "minus zero", "plus 2%" meaning the
panels come from the factory ready to produce
at or above their
rated power.
Low carbon footprint, made in Massachusetts,
better than rated performance, how can you
beat that?
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In last
month's newsletter, I wrote about my
son's efforts to enact a zoning bylaw in
Hudson that would allow for the installation
of home-scale wind turbines. Here is the latest:
We met with the Finance committee. It was a
nice meeting. Russell explained why he was
doing the project and I answered the wind
turbine questions. In the end, the finance
committee did not decide to "support" or "not
support" the bylaw. Instead they decided to
wait until the Planning Board has had a
chance to review it. Russell and I meet with
the panning board on April 1st (no foolin'),
8:00 PM, Town Hall. The public is welcome.
As I understand it, the finance committee
will decide to "support" or "not support" the
bylaw change after the planning board has
reviewed the bylaw. We hope to receive a
"support" vote from the finance committee. It
will help the vote at town meeting.
On a related note, similar attempt to change
Harvard's zoning bylaw failed at their
town meeting.
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Based on how things are going now, we expect
to be quite busy when the weather is nice. To
support the work, We will begin adding to our
crew.
if you know someone living in Metrowest
Boston who likes to work on roofs and wants
to install solar systems, have them send us
their resume.
If you are thinking about a solar system for
your property, don't delay. We schedule our
projects on a first-come-first-serve basis.
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Making the 29 billion plastic bottles used
for water in the United States each year
requires the equivalent of more than 17
million barrels of crude oil. 86% of those
bottles end up in landfills. Only 14% are
recycled (reference)
About seven quarts of water are used to
provide you with a a quart of bottled water
from Fiji(reference).
Please drink tap water.
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Turn off the lights, switch to compact fluorescent bulbs, put computer gear on a power strip and turn it off at night, wear a sweater, keep a blanket on the couch, unplug unnecessary appliances, add insulation, take shorter showers, walk instead of drive, ride a bike, group your errands, inflate your tires, grow your own food, eat locally-produced food, recycle, use your most efficient vehicle, get a hybrid vehicle, wash your clothes in cold water, buy less packaging, use a clothesline instead of the dryer, drink tap water, print with narrower margins, use both sides of the page, buy less, compost, install a renewable energy system...
Thanks for Reading the Energy Miser,
 Mark Durrenberger
New England Breeze, LLC
phone:
978-567-WIND (9463)
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