The press release below is jointly released from the New England Patriots (American Football team) and the deploying companies, but here’s a real example what we call a green-by-definition project….
FOXBOROUGH, Mass (August 2, 2010) – In a ceremony overlooking Gillette Stadium and The Hall at Patriot Place presented by Raytheon, Constellation Energy (NYSE: CEG), Evergreen Solar, Inc. (Nasdaq: ESLR) and Patriot Place announced the completion of a photovoltaic power system that will generate approximately 525 kilowatts of clean, renewable solar power at Patriot Place, The Kraft Group’s shopping, dining and entertainment destination adjacent to Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
U.S. Representative Barney Frank and Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Ian Bowles joined The Kraft Group Chairman & CEO Robert Kraft and officials from Patriot Place, Constellation Energy and Evergreen Solar for the announcement.
“When someone of [Robert Kraft's] stature as a business leader and promoter of economic development shows you that the environmental movement can be not just a chore, but a source of economic strength and growth, I hope others pay attention,” said Congressman Frank during the program.
“This is good business and the greening of our environment is important for our children and grandchildren,” said Kraft.
“Through Governor Patrick’s leadership, Massachusetts is on track for a 20-fold increase in solar power over a four-year period,” said Bowles. “This new 525-kilowatt array at Patriot Place is another chapter in the Commonwealth’s solar success story – which has added jobs and companies across the Massachusetts economy. I congratulate Patriot Place, Constellation Energy and Evergreen Solar for a project that will have a huge public profile throughout football season and beyond.”
Constellation Energy’s subsidiary, Constellation Energy’s Projects & Services Group, began installing the system in November 2009. It now supplies approximately 30 percent of Patriot Place’s power and spans seven building rooftops at the complex. Among them is The Hall at Patriot Place Presented by Raytheon, an award-winning sports and entertainment experience. Photovoltaic panels on the roof of The Hall will be visible to visitors from inside Gillette Stadium and from Patriot Place’s upper retail plaza, promoting commercial applications of solar power.
“We are pleased to announce the completion of this beautiful new solar facility at Patriot Place,” said Michael Smith, Constellation Energy Sr. Vice President of Green Initiatives. “We’re confident that this highly visible project will promote solar power and its viability in states like Massachusetts, and hope that it spurs similar solar projects throughout New England.”
The system’s 2,556 solar panels will generate more than 625,000 kilowatt hours of electricity annually. They were supplied by Massachusetts-based Evergreen Solar. “We’re thrilled that Patriot Place has chosen Evergreen Solar for this highly-visible solar installation,” said Scott Gish, Vice President of Sales & Marketing for Evergreen Solar. “As a company producing solar panels that deliver more electricity with less impact on the environment including the smallest carbon footprint, we feel we align perfectly with the environmental goals of Patriot Place while demonstrating the viability of solar power to the many patrons and fans traveling through this incredible complex.”
Constellation Energy’s Projects & Services Group estimates that the system will generate more than 12 million kilowatt hours of electricity over 20 years, and prevent the release of more than 8,800 metric tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. That is the equivalent of removing more than 1,600 passenger vehicles from the road for a year. The system’s real time power output and performance can be monitored through a Web-based data acquisition system.
Under a 20-year power purchase agreement, Constellation Energy‘s Projects & Services Group will own the energy assets and sell the electricity it generates on site to Patriot Place.
“This project is a cornerstone of Patriot Place’s sustainability initiatives and we are proud that its visibility will help promote practical and cost-effective commercial applications of solar power,” said Jim Nolan, Sr. VP of Finance, Administration and Operations for Gillette Stadium/Patriot Place.
Patriot Place, which began opening in phases in 2008, was constructed utilizing sustainable design practices, including low-emitting construction materials and white roofs to facilitate heat island reduction. Patriot Place also employs an on-site wastewater re-use system that saves millions of gallons of water annually, and solar-powered trash receptacles throughout the complex reduce waste volume and energy consumption.
Strange Bedfellows
On the other side, in support of Prop 23, some strange bedfellows, too, like the CA Firefighter’s Association, The Coalition of Labor, Agriculture & Business, and the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry, traditionally democrat, and the CA Republican Party (sans the governor). According to http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/greenspace/2010/03/ab-32-ballot-initiative-global-warming-california-climate-change.html Ted Costa, head of the Peoples Advocate, withdrew initial support in March 2010, saying, “”Big money interests have come in and shut out the people.”
There’s pretty big money on both sides of the issue. Louise Bedsworth, a research fellow at the Public Policy Institute of California, predicted in April that total campaign spending on Proposition 23 could top the $154 million record set in 2006 by Proposition 87. (http://tinyurl.com/prop23-cost). The largest contributors on the support side are some CA based oil companies, oil refiner companies, or companies and associations supporting the oil and gas industry. The largest contributors on the “Vote No” side are the companies listed in the beginning of this post.
To quote from our book, “There may be quite a debate around the true causes (of global climate change) are, but one only has to look at the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report (2007) to answer the question on whether or not there is a significant change in the world’s climate….” the recent trend may or may not be part of a “much larger cycle”, but it is clear that something is going on and that green house gas emissions are contributing to the change.
As project managers, at the least, we need to know how the vote goes. No one is really sure how many jobs (projects) are being created and maintained while companies work to comply with AB32, but we can speculate that if Proposition 23 passes, those jobs will vaporize, except for those companies who agree with our assertion that “a project run with green intent is the right thing to do…”