Puget Sound Energy (PSE) partnered with the City of Bonney Lake to install its fourth Community Solar site on the roof of the city’s peaking storage water reservoir. At 30 feet tall and 275 feet across, there were some challenges including how to safely get equipment and workers up on the site. Working with the city and installer, PSE designed and launched the project featuring 1,368 solar panels providing 450 kilowatts of AC power.  

Olympia Community Solar and the Olympia School District are partnering on an exciting new community solar project on Thurgood Marshall Middle School!  Enrollment is open for the 306 solar panels, a system large enough to power about half of the school’s energy needs (150 kW DC).  The project will bring long-term energy cost savings to the school, reduce pollution, and provide educational opportunities for the students at Thurgood Marshall. The solar array will provide young minds the opportunity to engage with an innovative technology that provides educational, economic, and environmental benefits to the school.

The Suquamish Tribe held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the completion of a solar array project on the roof of the Family and Friend's Center (ʔiišədalʔtxʷ ʔə ti suq̓ʷabš). The celebration featured interactive and educational activities designed to engage younger community members on the benefits of solar power, including an overview of career pathways to get a foothold in the clean energy industry.  The solar-powered electricity expected to be  generated every year is equivalent to avoiding 21.2 metric tons of CO2 or 52,711 miles driven by an average gasoline-powered passenger vehicle or the electricity to power over 4 homes (*).  

As part of Solar Washington's goal to work with people, companies, programs and organizations, joining together to advance solar energy in Washington State, we will be highlighting a variety of solar projects in Washington. This month, Solar Washington's Vice President Alex Nephew visited the Snohomish County PUD Arlington Microgrid Project with his fellow insurance broker Adam Bain and came back with a video that he is sharing with the Solar Washington's audience.

The new Mukilteo ferry terminal opened in December with Native-inspired design and art--and a roof filled with solar panels installed by A&R Solar.

The state-of-the-art facility anchors the second busiest ferry route in the state. Washington State Ferries solicited input from several groups, including local tribes. Residents asked that the terminal be green, Washington State required that the building be LEED-certified, and local tribes wanted it to be “light on the earth.”