Local solar power efforts come up short

In 2006, the City of Lacey installed Data Collection Units  (DCU) on city light poles to read individual water meters on homes.    Those DCU’s are powered by solar panels.

The city up-graded its collection units with new software.  Now, the solar panels don’t provide enough energy to power the DCUs.   According to the city, we don’t get enough daylight during winter months to adequately power the DCUs.

The city is currently unhooking the DCUs from the solar panels and connecting them to street light power.

Thanks to the City of Lacey for providing this information in its monthly newsletter.  I reprinted here for those who don’t get the newsletter, or who don’t read the newsletter when it comes.

There are two lessons learned.

The current government effort to disconnect the national power grid from gas, coal and oil and hook it up to wind and solar generation has major problems.  Not the least of which is the inability of “renewable” energy to meet the current needs let alone future needs.

And, the fact that solar power isn’t working for water meter data collection was released by the City of Lacey.   Thanks to them for doing so.  But, we have come to depend on government to provide us information on government activities.  All too often we fail to get bad news by way of those government channels.   We need a local media which can monitor government action.  Please support your local media – be it “The Olympian”  Thurston Talk or JOLT.