Monday March 31, 2025
University of California —
A groundbreaking initiative led by faculty from seven top research universities aims to accelerate the deployment of solar arrays over California’s extensive canal network.
According to a 2021 UC Merced study published in Nature Sustainability, covering large sections of the state’s 4,000 miles of canals with arrays of solar panels could help conserve water, reduce air pollution, save land, and generate clean energy using existing land and infrastructure.
A pilot effort, Project Nexus, is being built over Turlock Irrigation District canals to test the theory. The pilot is funded by the state of California and is a public-private-academic partnership between Turlock Irrigation District, Solar AquaGrid, UC Merced and the California Department of Water Resources.
At a solar summit in Sacramento on Monday, TID General Manager Brad Koehn said the panels on the initial phase of Project Nexus have started to generate electricity.