City of Airdrie receives more than $1m from MCCAC
The City of Airdrie’s $2.8 million solar array project at Genesis Place has received just over $1 million in rebate funding from the Municipal Climate Change Action Centre’s Alberta Municipal Solar Program. The project was also eligible for an additional $1.3 million from the Federal Gas Tax Fund.
The City’s main recreation centre, Genesis Place, is home to the largest municipal rooftop solar array in Canada. This project has helped the City of Airdrie with its goal to increase its production of renewable energy while remaining environmentally sustainable despite rapid growth.
Between the solar carport in the parking lot, and the rooftop array, a total of 4,044 solar PV modules were installed at Genesis Place. The system has a total capacity of 1.62 Megawatts and is expected to produce about 1.75 Gigawatt-hours of electricity each year. This will offset about 30% of the facility’s annual electricity usage. Airdrie has budgeted a conservative annual energy savings of $104,762.
Also, it will reduce the City’s annual greenhouse gas emissions by 1,117 tonnes CO2e, which is equivalent to taking 342 passenger vehicles off the road.
Overall, the City of Airdrie staff and residents are excited about this new addition to the City. Mayor Peter Brown says, “Airdrie is proud to be leading the way in Canada with respect to the generation of solar energy through municipal infrastructure. This project is good for Airdrie residents and the environment, and is an incredible example of what we can accomplish when different levels of government work together, with great organizations, towards a common goal. It's the next step toward self-sustainability and where we need to go as a community.”
To learn more about programs to advance climate and energy initiatives in your municipality, visit mccac.ca
