Friday April 8, 2022
ABC 7 —
They crisscross the Central Valley, driving one of the most productive food producing economies in the world. But soon, irrigation canals and aqueducts could help power thousands of California homes and businesses as well, thanks to an experimental project launched by the Turlock Irrigation District to cover them with solar.
“Yeah, I mean, at the most basic level, we are studying how do you span canals that go from 20 feet to 110 feet, and put solar over the top of them,” explained Josh Weimer with the district.
In other words, turning sun -drenched canals, into solar power producers. Project partner, Solar AquaGrid, designed the panels to act as canopies shading the canals from the sun. Once they’re suspended in place, the test-grids are expected generate about 5-megawatts of renewable energy. But CEO Jordan Harris believes they may also help protect the precious water from the effects climate change and losses from evaporation.