The Santa Rita Jail in Dublin, California isn’t your average prison complex. Its independent power system, or microgrid, sets it apart from its peers—and saves an estimated $100,000 a year.
The jail’s microgrid comprises a rooftop solar array, wind turbines, a fuel cell, and a battery system. Sunshine runs the system during the day, with help from the batteries in cloudy weather. The fuel cell provides an additional power boost by turning fossil or alternative fuels into electricity.
The Santa Rita Jail is just one instance of a broader trend toward microgrids, Todd Woody writes. This is in part because microgrids do more than just cut back on fossil-fuel consumption: they also offer insurance against central power-system failures and natural disasters.
FULL STORY: The World's Greenest Jail?
San Diego to Install Solar ‘Microgrids’
The self-sufficient energy systems will help the city improve its resiliency during power outages.
Can New York City Go Green Without Renewable Rikers?
New York City’s bold proposal to close the jail on Rikers Island and replace it with green infrastructure is in jeopardy. Will this compromise the city’s ambitious climate goals?
Minnesota Utilities to Go Carbon-Free by 2040
If signed by the governor, a new state law would require all utilities in the state to switch to renewable energy within two decades.
‘Forward Together’ Bus System Redesign Rolling Out in Portland
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The public is weighing in on a suite of options for repairing, replacing, or removing Interstate 794 in downtown Milwaukee.
Can New York City Go Green Without Renewable Rikers?
New York City’s bold proposal to close the jail on Rikers Island and replace it with green infrastructure is in jeopardy. Will this compromise the city’s ambitious climate goals?
700-Acre Master-Planned Community Planned in Utah
A massive development plan is taking shape for lakefront property in Vineyard, Utah—on the site of a former U.S. Steel Geneva Works facility.
More Cities Ponder the End of Drive-Thrus
Drive-thru fast food restaurants might be a staple of American life, but several U.S. cities are actively considering prohibiting the development of new drive-thrus for the benefit of traffic safety, air quality, and congestion.
Air Pollution World’s Worst Public Health Threat, Report Says
Air pollution is more likely to take years life off the lifespan of the average human than any other external factor, according to a recent report out of the University of Chicago.
Placer County
City of Morganton
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Dongguan Binhaiwan Bay Area Management Committee
City of Waukesha, WI
Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Indiana Borough
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