Community Renewal Energy Waterloo (CREW)

Event Details:

Location: Hauser Haus room at the Waterloo Memorial Recreation Complex
                 101 Father David Bauer Drive

Date: Thursday August 13th 2009

Time: 6:30 – 9pm

Out Of The Dark: A Solar Information Night will teach homeowners how they can harvest free energy from the sun.  Attendees will learn about an exciting opportunity in Waterloo Region: the Solar Initiative for Distributed Energy (SIDE).
 
The SIDE initiative, organized by local group Community Renewable Energy Waterloo (CREW), includes a bulk purchase of solar technology options which generate domestic hot water or electricity.  This bulk purchase reduces costs paid by homeowners. Installations of the technology are made easy, with all permits and incentive applications managed by CREW’s preferred installers.  All homeowners need to do is review a contract and sign up. It is as easy as buying a car except that, unlike a car, solar panels will provide a return on investment, last for decades and reduce air pollution.
 
Ted Sherk, coordinator of the SIDE initiative, is optimistic about neighbours coming together to create local renewable power. "Community groups have been identified by the Ontario Power Authority as a key stakeholder in the future of the electricity system,” he said. “It's up to us as Ontarians to choose emissions-free energy sources."
 
The evening event will be held at the Waterloo Memorial Recreation Complex on Thursday August 13th (see details below) and will be organized by CREW and the Residential Energy Efficiency Project (REEP). Solar installers will be on-hand to give demonstrations and answer questions.  Various solar technologies will be discussed, including solar panels that generate electricity (called photovoltaic or “PV”) and others that heat water (called solar thermal).
 
Three guest speakers will be featured at the event. Jed Goldberg, president of Earth Day Canada, will speak about community solar bulk purchases and how homeowners, churches and small businesses in Waterloo Region can work together towards a future that is environmentally, socially and economically sustainable. Waterloo Mayor Brenda Halloran and Regional Chair Ken Seiling will speak to represent the support that the City of Waterloo and Region of Waterloo have for solar energy.
 
The event comes on the eve of the 6th anniversary of North America’s largest power outage, which affected over 55 million people in Ontario and 8 states on August 14, 2003. In commemoration of the great blackout, the event will emphasize the importance of conserving energy in homes and will provide information about grants available for energy-saving renovations and upgrades.
 
Through four different incentive programs, the Canadian and Ontario governments are showing great support for solar installations on homes. The Home Renovation Tax Credit Solar offers a 15% credit for installations up to a maximum of $1350.  The ecoENERGY for Homes program offers a non-taxable $2500 grant for qualifying solar water heater installations.  A PST rebate on solar installations is also available through the Ontario Ministry of Revenue.
 
The most anticipated incentive comes as part of Ontario’s Green Energy Act. While electricity typically costs homeowners 6¢ per kWh, the provincial government currently pays 42 ¢ per kWh to homeowners who produce electricity with their solar photovoltaic (or “PV”) panels and feed it into the grid.  Soon, under the Green Energy Act, this rate will be doubled to a rate of 80.2¢ per kWh.  This will dramatically reduce the time it will take for homeowners to pay back the initial investment in the system to only 10-12 years, with a return on investment of 8-11%.  The details of the regulations are currently being finalized.
 
For event information:
Erica Robinson       
Event Coordinator
Community Renewable Energy Waterloo (CREW)
crewsolarinfo@gmail.com
 
For solar technology information:
Ted Sherk
CREW Solar coordinator
solar@crewzone.ca

For more information on CREW, please visit http://www.crewzone.ca/