This morning, Governor Deval Patrick and Secretary ofEnergy and Environmental Affairs Ian A. Bowles attended a ceremony held at MWRA's Deer Island Treatment Plant in Winthrop to announce two initiatives relative to renewable energy in Massachusetts – a second phase of expansion by Marlboro-based Evergreen Solar at its manufacturing facility in Devens, and a year’s worth of progress with state agencies adopting renewable energy under the Governor’s “Leading By Example” Executive Order.

At today's ceremony, Governor Patrick congratulated MWRA for its leadership on renewable energy and showcased a newly installed solar panel array on the roof of one of the facilities' buildings.

“MWRA has been superlative in its efforts to use clean, renewable energy in its operations,” said Governor Patrick. “With solar panels today, and wind turbines tomorrow – for all to see, as people fly in and out of Logan Airport – MWRA is truly leading by example as we create a clean energy
economy for Massachusetts."

The Deer Island solar panel project consists of a 100 kW roof mounted system sited on the Residual/Odor Control Building. This site was selected because it has large unobstructed roof sections that would easily accommodate photovoltaic arrays, and the roof (resurfaced 3 years ago) is in very good condition with a life expectancy of approximately 20 years. In addition, the power generated will be utilized on-site.

A design/build contract was awarded to Borrego Solar Systems, Inc., in September 2007, and completed April 2008. The final connections are being made and the panels should be on line within a week or two.

The $870,000 solar panel project was funded by the $310,000 CREBs loan and a grant of $560,000 from the Division of Energy Resources.

Electricity produced by the solar panels will be used on-site to reduce the amount of electricity purchased by Deer Island. Also, the solar panels will be a qualified Massachusetts RPS renewable generation unit and MWRA can sell the Renewable Energy Certificates as it currently does with the digester-gas.

The energy produced by these solar panels annually will offset the equivalent of 83 metric tons of CO2, or the equivalent of:

• 9,300 gallons of gasoline
• 190 barrels of oil
• Electricity usage of 12 homes.

The project was designed and built by:

Labor
IBEW Local 103, Dorchester, MA

Manufacturers
Panels: Evergreen Solar, Marlborough, MA
Inverter: Solectria Renewables, Lawrence, MA

Design/Build Team
Designer/General Contractor: Borrego Solar Systems, Inc., Chelmsford, MA
Electrical Subcontractor: Lighthouse Electrical, Pembroke, MA
Roofing Subcontractor: Corolla Roofing Company, Chelsea, MA
Lightning Protection: Advanced Lightning, Hanson, MA

Preliminary Design/Owner’s Rep
Consultant: Fay Spofford & Thorndike, Burlington, MA
Solar Design Subcontractor: New Energy Options, Littleton, MA

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