EL CAJON, CA, Mar. 30, 2011 -- The Helix Water District, which serves the cities of La Mesa, El Cajon, Lemon Grove and unincorporated areas of San Diego County, has activated a 290 kilowatt (KW) solar photovoltaic (PV) system at the Nat L. Eggert Operations Center.
The zero-emission system was deployed through a partnership with Borrego Solar Systems and the California Center for Sustainable Energy (CCSE).
"Clean drinking water is one of our nation's most important natural resources," said DeAna Verbeke, President of The Helix Water District Board of Directors. "By working with the CCSE and Borrego Solar to incorporate solar, we have taken a step forward in combining water conservation with clean energy generation."
The system will be operated and maintained under a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with Borrego Solar. Through the PPA, The District will purchase 454,000 kWhs per year of clean energy, approximately 90 percent of the energy consumed annually by the OC.
A $463,900 rebate from the California Solar Initiative helped to offset the cost of the project, which is expected to offset more than an estimated 11.9 million pounds of greenhouse gas emissions (CO2) over 20 years.
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