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AriSEIA, Has published several articles or letters that are of interest to our Arizona solar community:

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 Interesting Arizona Solar Stories 

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Interesting Technology Updates -Click on a title below

  • - A radical idea to get a high-renewable electric grid

    This is an interesting approach to optaining very high penetration of renewables such as photovoltaics and wind.  At present most large installations operate under Power Purchase Agreements (PPA) wherein the economics are based on a sell all output at predetermined prices. This contrasts with standalone systems wherein the system size Read More
  • - Breakthrough Batteries Powering the Era of Clean Electrification

    - Breakthrough Batteries Powering the Era of Clean Electrification Battery Storage Costs Drop Dramatically, Making Way to a New Era. A recent Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) report continues to confirm that clean electrification through batteries is advancing at impressive rates. Very interesting report: Breakthrough Batteries- Powering the Era of Clean Electrification Read More
  • - Interesting Technology

    An assortment of links to interesting information   Semiconductor Nanowires Could Double the Efficiency of Silicon Solar Cells A p/n semiconductor junction is not the only way of converting sunshine into useful electrical energy.  Light consists of a flow of photons of various energy levels (colors).  See this article-Solar Cells.  Nanowires Read More
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General News

Caution- News leads open in new windows. Warning- These news links are automatically generated by others such as Google News and are not reviewed by the Arizona Solar Center, Inc. We are not responsible for link content.

Interesting Videos

Initiatives & Programs

Arizona Initiatives

Governor's Solar Energy Advisory Task Force (closed by Gov. Ducey)

Arizona Energy Consortium
(November 2011 Report: Arizona's Solar Strategic Plan)

Environment Arizona
(March 2010 Report Summary: Building a Solar Future - Repowering America's Homes, Businesses and Industry with Solar Energy)

 

National Initiatives

Information about current and past initiatives and programs at a national level may be found on the Solar Initiatives page of the US Department of Energy EERE Information Center website.

 

Past Initiatives in Arizona

Arizona Solar Initiative (1999-2001)

The Mission of the Arizona Solar Initiative was to encourage individual, local, and statewide action that capitalized on the national Million Solar Roof Initiative and the region's explosive growth. This Initiative sought to enable Arizona to become a national leader in solar energy utilization, manufacturing, and exports.

Goal 1: Establish an Arizona Solar Initiative sub-committee of the Arizona Solar Energy Advisory Council. The sub-committee will be comprised of invited parties and a representative from the Energy Office.

Goal 2: Install 100,000 new thermal and photovoltaic systems in Arizona by 2010.

Goal 3: Establish technical capabilities to utilize solar in government and non-government application.

Goal 4: Educate consumers about the benefits of using passive and active solar systems.

Goal 5: Coordinate industry and government efforts to overcome institutional barriers.

Goal 6: Develop and support solar manufacturing capacity in the state.

Solar PEIS Exclusion Analysis

The following is a list of exclusions for BLM Land identified as appropriate in the Solar Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (Solar PEIS) for Solar Energy Development in Six Southwestern States in July 2012. Courtesy of Bob Sullivan of Argonne National Laboratory.

See solareis.anl.gov for additional information about the Solar PEIS.

 

  1. Lands with slopes greater than 5% determined through geographical information system (GIS) analysis using digital elevation models.
  2. Lands with solar insolation levels less than 6.5 kWh/m2/day determined through National Renewable Energy Laboratory solar radiation GIS data (http://www.nrel.gov/rredc/solar_data.html).
  3. All Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACECs) identified in applicable land use plans (including Desert Wildlife Manage Areas (DWMAs)  in the California Desert District planning area).
  4. All designated and proposed critical habitat areas for species protected under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) of 1973 (as amended) as identified in respective recovery plans (http://ecos.fws.gov/tess_public/TESSWebpageRecovery?sort=1).
  5. All areas for which an applicable land use plan establishes protection for lands with wilderness characteristics.
  6. Developed recreational facilities, special-use permit recreation sites (e.g., ski resorts and camps), and all Special Recreation Management Areas (SRMAs) identified in applicable land use plans, except for those in the State of Nevada and a portion of the Yuma East SRMA in Arizona.
  7. All areas where the BLM has made a commitment to state agency partners and other entities to manage sensitive species habitat, including but not limited to sage grouse core areas, nesting habitat, and winter habitat; Mohave ground squirrel habitat; flat-tailed horned lizard habitat; and fringe-toed lizard habitat.
  8. Greater sage-grouse habitat (currently occupied, brooding, and winter habitat) as identified by the BLM in California, Nevada, and Utah, and Gunnison's sage-grouse habitat (currently occupied, brooding, and winter habitat) as identified by the BLM in Utah.
  9. All areas designated as no surface occupancy (NSO) in applicable land use plans
  10. All right-of-way (ROW) exclusion areas identified in applicable land use plans.
  11. All ROW avoidance areas identified in applicable land use plans.
  12. In California, lands classified as Class C in the California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) planning area.
  13. In California and Nevada, lands in the Ivanpah Valley.
  14. In Nevada, lands in Coal Valley and Garden Valley.
  15. All Desert Tortoise translocation sites identified in applicable land use plans, project-level mitigation plans or Biological Opinions.
  16. All Big Game Migratory Corridors identified in applicable land use plans.
  17. All Big Game Winter Ranges identified in applicable land use plans.
  18. Research Natural Areas identified in applicable land use plans.
  19. Lands classified as Visual Resource Management (VRM) Class I or II (and, in Utah, Class IIId) in applicable land use plans
  20. Secretarially designated National Recreation, Water, or Side and Connecting Trails and National Back Country Byways (BLM State Director approved) identified in applicable BLM and local land use plans (available at http://www.americantrails.org/NRTDatabase), including any associated corridor or lands identified for protection through an applicable land use plan.
  21. All units of the BLM National Landscape Conservation System, congressionally designated National Scenic and Historic Trails (National Trails System Act [NTSA], P.L. 90-543, as amended), and trails recommended as suitable for designation through a congressionally authorized National Trail Feasibility Study, or such qualifying trails identified as additional routes in law (e.g., West Fork of the Old Spanish National Historic Trail), including any trail management corridors identified for protection through an applicable land use plan. Trails undergoing a congressionally authorized National Trail Feasibility Study will also be excluded pending the outcome of the study.
  22. National Historic and Natural Landmarks identified in applicable land use plans, including any associated lands identified for protection through an applicable land use plan.
  23. Lands within the boundaries of properties listed in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) and any additional lands outside the designated boundaries identified for protection through an applicable land use plan.
  24. Traditional cultural properties and Native American sacred sites as identified through consultation with tribes and recognized by the BLM.
  25. Wild, Scenic, and Recreational Rivers designated by Congress, including any associated corridor or lands identified for protection through an applicable river corridor plan.
  26. Segments of rivers determined to be eligible or suitable for Wild or Scenic River status identified in applicable land use plans, including any associated corridor or lands identified for protection through an applicable land use plan.
  27. Old Growth Forest identified in applicable land use plans.
  28. Lands within a solar energy development application area found to be inappropriate for solar energy development through an environmental review process that occurred prior to finalization of the Draft Solar PEIS.
  29. Lands previously proposed for inclusion in SEZs that were determined to be inappropriate for development through the NEPA process for the Solar PEIS (limited to parts of the Brenda SEZ in Arizona; the previously proposed Iron Mountain SEZ area and parts of the Pisgah and Riverside East SEZs in California; parts of the De Tilla Gulch, Fourmile East, and Los Mogotes East SEZs in Colorado; and parts of the Amargosa Valley SEZ in Nevada.
  30. In California, all lands within the proposed Mojave Trails National Monumentg and all conservation lands acquired outside of the proposed Monument through donations or use of Land and Water Conservation Funds.
  31. In California, BLM-administered lands proposed for transfer to the National Park Service with the concurrence of the BLM.
  32. Specific areas identified since the publication of the Supplement to the Draft Solar PEIS by the BLM based on continued consultation with cooperating agencies and tribes to protect sensitive natural, visual, and cultural resources (total of 1,066,497 acres [4,316 km2]; see Figure ES.2-1. Note there are some overlapping exclusions). Data and finer scale maps will be made available through the Solar PEIS project Web site (http://solareis.anl.gov). Note that in some cases, the description of these areas will be withheld from the public to ensure protection of the resource.

Western Governors' Association

The Western Governors' Association is active in coordinating cross-border efforts to establish effective energy policies. In addition, you'll learn more about how WGA operates, including their fiscal year financial report, and read columns by their Chairman, Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead, as well as WGA Executive Director Jim Ogsbury.

  • Annual Reports: addresses a variety of topics inlcluding energy, and so provides context for the Association's specifically energy related initiatives.

Know Your Rights

Arizona law protects individual homeowners’ private property rights to solar access by dissolving any local covenant, restriction or condition attached to a property deed that restricts the use of solar energy. This law sustained a legal challenge in 2000. A Maricopa County Superior Court judge ruled in favor of homeowners in a lawsuit filed by their homeowners association seeking to force the homeowners to remove roof-top solar panels. The judge found that the association's "guidelines combined with [its] conduct 'effectively prohibited' the defendants from placing solar heating devices on their residence, contrary to the provisions of A.R.S.-33-439 (A)." The opinion can be reviewed at GARDEN LAKES COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION INC v. MADIGAN.

Senate Bill 1254, enacted in July 2007, stipulates that a homeowners association may not prohibit the installation or use of solar-energy devices (panels and associated devices). An association may, however, adopt reasonable rules regarding the placement of a solar device if those rules do not prevent the installation of the device, impair the functioning of the device, restrict its use, or adversely affect the cost or efficiency of the device. The bill also grants reasonable attorney fees to any party who substantially prevails in litigation against an association's board of directors.

The Arizona Legislature passed ARS-33-439 in 1979 in order to protect individual homeowners private property rights to use solar energy.

Source: www.dsireusa.org

Also see Arizona SB 1417-2016 impacts

Interesting article on Enforceability of HOA Regulations  (but it is really an advertisement that is not endorsed by the Arizona Solar Center, Inc.)

About

  • Welcome to the Arizona Solar Center

     This is your source for solar and renewable energy information in Arizona. Explore various technologies, including photovoltaics, solar water heating, solar architecture, solar cooking and wind power. Keep up to date on the latest industry news. Follow relevant lectures, expositions and tours. Whether you are a homeowner looking to become more energy efficient, a student learning the science behind the technologies or an industry professional, you will find valuable information here.
  • About The Arizona Solar Center

    About The Arizona Solar Center Arizona Solar Center Mission- The mission of the Arizona Solar Center is to enhance the utilization of renewable energy, educate Arizona's residents on solar technology developments, support commerce and industry in the development of solar and other sustainable technologies and coordinate these efforts throughout the state of Arizona. About the Arizona Solar Center- The Arizona Solar Center (AzSC) provides a broad-based understanding of solar energy, especially as it pertains to Arizona. Registered Read More
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