SUN & WIND RECYLE WATER

Harnessing Sun and Wind Energy for Water Treatment
John Young, May 19, 2010 (Environmental Protection)

"…American Water set a goal to lower its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per volume of water produced by 16 percent by the year 2017…Considering that we treat, pump and deliver 1 billion gallons of water a day, the goal is significant…A large portion of the reduction will come from increasing pump efficiencies, but 6 percent (37 percent of emissions reduced) will be achieved by increasing the use of renewable energy sources – either generated onsite or purchased.

"In 2005, the company launched its use of alternative energy by investing in solar technology for the Canal Road Water Treatment Plant in Somerset, N.J., and enrolling in wind power for the Yardley Water Treatment Facility in Yardley, Pa…[B]oth have achieved ecological benefits and cost efficiencies beyond original projections."

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"…New Jersey American Water chose to invest in owning the [solar] system…[and] installed a ground-mounted dual-array photovoltaic (PV) system at its 80-million-gallon-per-day (mgd) Canal Road facility…The PV system, the second-largest ground-mounted system east of the Mississippi River, includes 3,718 solar modules, supporting steel structures, wiring, two 225 kWac inverters and one 100kWac inverter, revenue-grade metering and an Internet-based data-acquisition system…

"The first phase of the project was constructed for approximately $1.6 million, after a $1.9 million rebate from the Clean Energy Program. The solar panels make up about two-thirds of the overall capital cost. The balance is for other equipment — inverters, transformers, AC and DC disconnects, Internet data-acquisition system, and wiring and conduit — and includes engineering, installation labor, and overhead costs. Phases two and three cost $500,000 and $640,000 after rebates, respectively. New Jersey American Water recouped its investment in less than five years.

"The system, which supplements 20 percent of the peak usage power needed to run the plant, reduces energy usage by 817,000 kilowatt-hours of AC a year. This prevents 1,875 pounds of nitrogen oxide, 3,927 pounds of sulfur dioxide and 1,115,000 pounds of carbon dioxide from being emitted into the air…equivalent to planting 125 acres of tree seedlings or preserving 5.6 acres of land from deforestation…[T]he system allows New Jersey American Water to sell [$553,000 of] tradable, solar-specific Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) [in 2009]…thereby reducing their overall costs…"

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"Pennsylvania American Water committed to operate its 6-mgd Yardley Water Treatment Plant with 100 percent pollution-free electricity by enrolling in a wind power program…Offered by the local electricity service provider, PECO, the PECO WIND program provides electricity using state-of-the-art windmills, as supplied by wind energy developer, Community Energy, Inc…

"Through this program, the company purchases 1,603,200 kWh of green power annually to power the entire facility, which is the environmental equivalent of planting more than 119 thousand trees or not driving 1.5 million miles each year…[T]he commitment to wind power didn’t result in cost savings but did help the facility become more efficient. The company found additional cost savings to offset the $0.02 per kWh increase in the plant’s electric bill…[E]nrolling in a wind energy program is ideal for smaller utilities that want to commit to greener operations but can’t undertake the level of commitment required by solar installations…"