The Ultimate Absurdity

                          

                    THE ULTIMATE ABSURDITY

                    That would be the Nelson community solar garden.  

                               The Nelson solar garden in 10 years or less

The solar garden real costs likely over $300,000, don’t be fooled by their $186,000, its forgetting to show the public all the costs.  Forgetting?

What city wouldn't like to have their own power plant making power for 2 cents/kWh and sell it for 10 cents helping the city reducing taxes paying for city services.

What city would then waste money on a solar garden that only makes power midday when it can't be sold, doesn't save any GHG anywhere.  The concept of reducing GHG from the solar garden is to avoid the fuel otherwise spent in a conventional power plant somewhere burning non renewable fuels like coal or gas.  If the power doesn't even get to the grid because no one is buying, the solar garden is a GHG contributor.  What power is Nelson hydro putting to the grid midday if the sun shines in summer, the only time any appreciable solar power is made?


  

The $963 per panel buy in is a token amount for those who want to feel "green", it has nothing to do with real costs and everything to do with picking everyone else's pocket so the mayor can say Nelson is a green city.

  

They want to start a  "movement" keep it up Nelson will go broke.  Every Kw of private solar panel will be at the expense of lost income selling 2 cent  cleaner greener Nelson hydro power for 10 cents and letting that profit flow over the dam wasting clean green waterpower.
Solar power in Nelson is picking the pockets of the taxpayer already living in a very expensive city. The public statements everyone who opts in and buys a solar panel will receive a year round credit, from what?   This is a green house gas reduction project? 


My grandchildren will inherit this pile of junk if they last 20 years.  10 Tons of solar panels plus mounting structures covering a soccer field making less power every year as they age.  Will the city send out snow clearing crews in winter everytime it snows for solar panels that already cost us the lost income from selling otherwise 4 cent Fortis power for 10 cents that these solar panels pretend to replace?

Now they are selling panels for the second solar garden, the first one sold out!!!

You will get a sticker for every solar panel you buy so you can proudly put it in your window.   

  

Look at me I'm green---I think?  They told me I would be?

  
And they want to keep picking our pockets, another  warm fuzzy project,the  the big wood stove  one estimate $6M 30 year payback.   I am beginning to have a huge dislike for the term "Green House Gas Reduction".

We have completed microhydro engineering report on the city water intake, showing it will pay for all the upgrades and make power for the next century or longer just like our dam.   The Pressure reducing station part of the Hall St. project is ready to install microhydro.   This new technique accomplishes the pressure reduction and makes power,,,,win win.....and we are putting in solar panels?  Who is managing this?

If you don't want your pocket picked anymore,,, let city council know.   There are only a couple councilors that I know get it,,,,

                                           .contact city council here

if you don't want your pocket picked for this greenwashing.

Will this city begin making business decisions?

  

The Emperor Has No Clothes

Norm Yanke

Electronics Supv. retired

Electronics Technologist.

Another Nelson Solar Boondoggle

Public grant money and possibly city dollars were used to build an eco-friendly washroom at the skatepark.

There was a newspaper article with a photograph of two engineers and a building technologist, a third engineer's company installed the solar system under the trees?


Notice the plant material roofing, tiny skylight to eliminate heat loss, the walls were thick straw coated with stucco.   The solar panel was to provide lighting and make hot water.

     The washroom is closed for winter, locked at dusk and re opened in the morning in summer.

Notice the solar panel under the trees, installed by our local solar company owned by a PEng.

A large skylight would have been adequate for a summer day use only washroom, the solar panel hasn't made enough hot water to wash a mouse's foot,  its under the trees?!!!!  The cost of this could have paid for simple day use washrooms built in every park in the city.

The past city councillor in the middle of the photo, her business was about building eco-friendly buildings.

When she and a past councillor created a contest so people could nominate members for their eco save buildings, and the best one would win a prize, I suggested a contest for the worst example.

That didn't go over, she put in a lot of time making excuses for this over the top project, but no contest was created for the worst example of eco-building.

72 Panels Sold at Big Event

Revised:  they sold out the first solar garden and are working on the next, how many solar gardens will we be paying for???

Nelson community solar garden big sale 200 solar panels,  72 sold...... 

         If you are a Nelson hydro customer outside the city, read on,  you too are paying for this.  Nelson has already seen  two grants of public money picking your pocket for solar demonstration systems for over $50,000, picking our pockets. 

                                  Greenwashers Picking Our Pockets Once More

                                                     Can Solar power be sold?     

Ask the cities highest paid person Alex Love manager of Nelson hydro what the value of solar power is to this city.     Once upon a time the project was supposed to be only $25,000 from Nelson hydro all future costs funded by those opting in.  This was told to me by Mr. Love when we first met over a year ago, repeated to me by the mayor at the spring Nelson hydro budget meeting.   If you read the city website it says there is only one person against this project,(I am sure they mean me)  when I met Alex love in early October, he again said I am the only person against the project.   I told him I could bring him many..

The consulting engineers supporting information is from a pyranometer, a small coffee cup sized device measuring sunlight hours, not representative of what really happens to a solar panel.

                       This shows how a tiny amount of snow affects solar power in the  real world.

                     Our grandchildren will inherit these solar panels, in the weeds in 25 years.

                     The chart below from the consulting engineers report showing annual energy that has never before been seen in our area and we have years of real data that I presented to Mr. Love and emailed the consultant.  Mr. Love told me my data was irrelevant, the consultant thanked me and said it's good to consider data from all sources.

                          Notice in the upper blue bar the cost at that time $293,514.00.

                           Why do the financial calculations use the theoretical power? 61MWh

                   They are scratching their heads over in Kimberley,  the SUNMINE solar project
                      $5.65M we know of isn't making the power projected,  63% of projections for December.

The Nelson solar garden consulting engineer is the SunMine engineer, using the same Swiss modeling program that was used for their project.  They claim almost double the annual sunhours in Kimberley as Nelson receives.   As much as Phoenix Arizona.

The city of Kimberley is in it for $2M, they will hopefully come out even, you and I are in for the rest, its all grant money.  At least the Western Diversification Fund pulled out their subsidy at the beginning.  Their mandate, to support projects with a business case.

          Our Bonnington solar site has had NO data collected.
                                   This is not engineering, this is greenwashing politics.

 The mist from the dams spillover creates a fog and in winter ice fog,  any chances this will affect solar power?  Without data who knows?
                Who cares about ice and snow, solar power in winter isn't worth talking about.

       The chart below will  help you understand why solar power at 49 degrees north in winter has no power!
            There is no power in weak low angle winter sunlight, that is what this graph below is showing you.
                                    Everyone thinks solar power is year round, its not.

                                I think we can do better things in Nelson with our money.

                          

 When I first met Mr. Love in 2014 I thought I could help him from my decades of actually having worked with solar power.  When we first me, he told me the project would not move forward if there wasn't a business case.  Its clear this has never been about a business case.

We have a ready to go engineering study for microhydro on the five mile water intake, it shows it would not only pay for the necessary upgrades but make power and money for maybe the next century like our dam.  Nakusp just put microhydro on their city water intake for $150,000 making power for 30-40 homes, in the dark in winter when we need it most.   Slocan city is pursuing microhydro to mitigate the lost income from their sawmill closure.  Why are we wasting money on solar panels that might last  25 years , doing nothing for us in winter when we buy the most power from Fortis?

AND THEY WANT TO DOUBLE THE SIZE, ANOTHER SOLAR GARDEN

Can you afford Nelson now?

Get your Window Stickers 

                                                               Look at Me, I'm green

Everyone who participates will get one for every panel they buy so they can proudly put them in their windows,  apparently a sticker for every solar panel you buy.

I expect to see the mayor and all city councilors who vote for this bylaw to have several window stickers, Mr. Love manager of Nelson hydro, highest paid person in the city, certainly should have several stickers in his window.  How about the city manager, stickers in his window too. 

There was mention of allowing those less fortunate to be able to participate with low or no interest loans, I bet those single parents struggling to exist in this expensive city will be lining up for their stickers.

Contact city council if you think this is a waste.

This applies to all Nelson hydro customers, not just those living in the city of Nelson.

Contact City council here

The Ecosave coordinator contractor for the city bringing this project to us says "its not about a pressing need for power but rather starting a movement"   

I can only think of one kind of movement myself.

UPDATE:  Years of known local solar data I provided to the manager of Nelson hydro, staff and his consultant showing the consultants estimate suggested annual power of known data by 25%.

Now the system has been installed over a year, they added 25% more panels, it did make

the original estimate that was exaggerating all known data by 25% and they were told.

Even with their exaggeration they published an item stating "in the opinion of local experts(who?) they could make over 70,000kWh annually, a 35 % exaggeration.

Of course it was supposed to be cheaper than hydro power in 7 years also.

If it doesn't make sense its probably not true (Judge Judy)

UPDATE:  

It was reported in the Star  in 2013

 Last year Nelson’s hydro plant ran at full capacity from the last week in April until the first week in August due to the higher-than-normal snowpack, rainfall, and runoff that combined for the highest river levels in nearly 40 years.

The 90 gigawatt hours the plant produced was the most in its 107-year history and resulted in a $500,000 windfall for the company, which is normally under contract to sell surplus power to BC Hydro at a fixed rate. Last year, however, BC Hydro also had a surplus of power and didn’t need any more.

 That was confusing?  Did the city sell to someone else? since hydro didn't buy it, the statement
"resulted in a $500,000 windfall" didn't make sense?

I asked Mr. Love to clarify--- his reply

This was a few years ago.

It has only been once that I know of that BC Hydro has advised it did not need the generation from our plant. We generated as much as possible and either used it ourselves or if there was excess, on an hour by hour basis, sold the excess to FortisBC.

The rate to sell to BC Hydro is a bit less than a cent whereas to sell to FortisBC we get their avoided cost of power purchase currently about 4 c  thus we much prefer to sell to FortisBC.

In years where BC Hydro does want power we still generally have some excess that we sell to FortisBC. BC Hydro claims on certain portion of the generation as part of a water license agreement from years ago.

Its 2015, 2013, is not a few years ago, its recent and at the spring hydro budget meeting this year 2015, Mr. Love said something like NH had made record power over 90GWh for 3 of the last 5 years.

If information for several years, although not current, it shows that BC Hydro purchased over 90% of any excess power Nelson hydro made,  todays price is  0.7 cents/kWh.  Less than a penny.
From the consulting engineers report all the summer power from april through September if sold to BC Hydro wouldn't make $211.

What is really going on?

If Nelson made a windfall $500,000 from excess power made from April through August, although a record year, it seems logical that Nelson may not have record years like that, but certainly would make all its own power.   Why would Nelson spend possibly $300,000 or more on a solar project that can't make enough power for 4 average canadian homes a year, and little more than one average home from September through April?

Political reasons to appear green at all our expense?  There is no other explanation.  This is why Nelson is becoming unaffordable.

Sometimes We Get Burned-Columbia Basin Trust

"Sometimes we get burned"

That comes from the Columbia Basin Trust gal (no longer with CBT but works in Nelson)  who put on the workshop    "How to apply for grants."

The engineer who filled out the application for the LiveSmart BC grant a couple years ago for $25,000 had just taken the workshop.   I have the FOI.   It was submitted at 3:57PM friday, it closed at 4pm.  Although the applicant was to have a track record of business success for over 2 years, they had one year?  The engineers office was in the building and his business installed the system on that roof.  The application was a work of art,  beautiful specification sheets for product, promises, who wouldn't give that money!  One cannot expect the grantors to be experts, and after all this was signed and submitted by a PEng.


The criteria, the project was to be a benefit to the community, replicable by all, and highly visible to the public.

The application said it would provide live streaming internet data so we could all see how the power was being made. After one year if all criteria were met the equipment belonged to the applicant.

I was in contact with LiveSmart and the Ministry of Environment pointing out that none of the criteria was met and the business was going broke, they were selling the equipment and keeping our money.

That business went broke, the building was purchased by technical people, involved in the city broadband initiative, they know the value of solar power.   The owner was offered the system at fire sale price, he told them to take it off his building.   Thats the story of the last solar demonstration system grant picking our pockets.  The grant recipient sold it and kept the money.

LiveSmartBC did nothing, they wanted to hide, it was a mistake and they didn't want it known.   When I contacted the Columbia Basin trust gal, pointing out what this grant workshop had done in this instance, she made the statement "sometimes we get burned".    This was one letter to the editor I wrote. .Energy Heroes to Energy Zeroes

Now the city is looking for a $60,000 grant from CBT for their community solar garden. If that comes through I would like it applied to the cost of the solar project to mitigate the costs to the rest of us ratepayers whose pockets are being picked once again for this "greenwashing".

At the moment it appears to be about reducing the buy in costs for those opting in.  When the project was first approved by city council it was to be only $25,000 from Nelson hydro ratepayers to get the project started and all future funding from those opting in, this was also submitted to the BCUC rate review, I have their letter from my complaint stating the same, only $25,000 from NH.

Nelson has already seen a SolarBC grant for a solar demonstration system,  the LiveSmartBC grant for the now missing solar system, the solar panel on the skatepark washroom in the trees, all adding up to over $50,000.   Now another possible $60,000 grant from CBT,  plus all ratepayers subsidizing this by paying full retail instead of making a profit from our 2c/kWh clean green water power.  And all future costs borne by Nelson hydro, if you are a Nelson hydro customer not living in the city, your pocket is being picked to!

 I have asked Mr. Love manager of Nelson hydro more than once,  "under whose authority and when did it change to all Nelson hydro customers paying?"   He won't answer.  At the spring Hydro budget meeting I complained to the mayor she said I wasn't going to pay anything.

There is no such thing as a "business case" for this solar garden.

If CBT offers this grant for $60,000, I am asking that it be used to mitigate the costs to all nelson hydro ratepayers, not the few buying in to the project.   I think we have seen enough money wasted in Nelson picking our pockets, we don't need another solar power demonstration system.

A municipal utility is supposed to do what is good for ALL ratepayers. I don't think this project fits that criteria..  I think CBT grants also must benefit the community, that will only happen if it is used to fund the project so my pocket and other ratepayers pockets aren't being picked, not to reduce the buy in costs for those who think this is green energy.

Simplified Nelson Hydro Economics

         
It seems Nelson energy policy goes back to the mayor having met Nelson's own climate scientist.  Didn't know we had one did you, mayor Kozak appears to have become a disciple.  It was he who introduced the mayor to his colleagues in Europe at the ALP-S energy institute.  This resulted in a trip by our ex mayor, mayor Kozak, Alex Love of Nelson hydro and others to Europe.   They came back with visions of solar panels dancing in their heads.  

Now we all know Germany has become the "golden child" in the world for solar power.  google
'german solar failure'.   Its turning out to be the biggest mistake they have made.

The european trip resulted in those people coming to Nelson to "partner" in some climate initiatives.

The mayor said she was going to write a report about the trip, I have never seen it, I did ask the mayor twice for this, no reply.

Mr. Love has returned again to Europe for unknown to me reasons for city business.


There is a Municipal charter, a mandate for municipal utilities like Nelson hydro, to do what is best for
the residents.   Do trips to Europe need to be made?


The APEGBC have a code of ethics,  this project looks like its stepping ALL over the above.


I have asked Mr. Love many questions, he won't answer, he has blocked my emails to all staff his consultant whom I have sent information to, saying I am wasting his and his staffs time.

The above sunchart shows sun position for Nelson annually.  See the chart upper right.
Notice line 7, minimal sunhours and low angle sun for December, mother nature controls this, solar when we need it in winter is next to useless.   The only power in the sun is above line 4, about April through August, when our dam makes all our own power,  and has excess to sell that isn't always sold.   If we are letting clean green water just flow over the dam unused, wouldn't that make this solar power worthless?


Apparently we can buy some "Bullfrog" power.  They sell green power, they gave Nelson either $15 or $25,000 for the rights to sell our 61MWh(unlikely) to other "green" people for a premium so they can
feel green.   It has been written, that is like selling tap water for bottled water prices.  Problem is our green solar power won't even likely enter the power grid, its phoney non existant green power!

Bullfrog power,  a Bay Street boys scheme playing the stupid people, not unlike those phoney charities with the sound alike names of legitimate charities.  Except 90% goes to the execs and maybe 10% to the charity.

Can I buy some dirty cheap power somewhere?  Made  from burning painted wood or tires and other contaminants.  I can't afford this greenwashing.

AM I THE ONLY ONE?

                                                     Nelson Hydro economics 101!!!!

The Nelson city website for the solar garden states there is only one person against the project,  when I spoke with Mr. Love in October he again told me I was the only person.  Its because I worked with solar power for decades, it was competitive with flying fuel by helicopter to remote generators.   Thats still the only place it makes economic sense at our latitude and annual sunhours.  I know the economics.
    Nelson hydro dam makes power for 2c/kwh and sells for 10c/kWh so lets send 2c/kWh wholesale clean green water over the dam, forgo the 500% profit it brings to the city  for 50c/kWh feel good green solar power,  seems to make sense to our highest paid man in the city, manager of Nelson Hydro, Alex Love.  At the spring hydro budget meeting Mr. Love bragged Nelson hydro had exceeded 90GWh record power for 3 of the previous 5 years.  But excess power couldn't be sold, you can click on the link below and read the full article.

The 90 gigawatt hours the plant produced was the most in its 107-year history and resulted in a $500,000 windfall for the company, which is normally under contract to sell surplus power to BC Hydro Hydro at a fixed rate. Last year, however, BC Hydro also had a surplus of power and didn’t need any more

Last year Nelson’s plant ran at full capacity from the last week in April until the first week in August.  But could NOT sell any surplus to BC HYDRO!!!

The above  "it resulted in a $500,000 windfall for Nelson Hydro, however BC Hydro didn't  buy it?"     Not sure what to think, did we make $500,000 or pretend we did?  A lot like the solar garden,  pretending to be green.

The consulting engineers  report below shows during that same time, April through August, more than 80% of annual solar power is made.  Are we wasting water over the dam that brings huge profit to the city for this expensive  "green" solar power?  Sure looks like it to me!

For the remaining 7 months from the consultants report, the total solar power earned is about 13,000kWh,  the average canadian home uses 11,000kWh/year.   The solar garden makes little more than enough power for ONE average home for those 7 months!,? 


And the financial calculations are based on the Simulated computer (fantasy) annual power of 61MWh,  Why not use the computer fantasy numbers no one will ever know....


                                          THIS IS FROM THE CONSULTANTS REPORT
        note in the Star article  top line the cost at that time was $293,000, now its $186,000, :) :)

The project was pitched to city council as only $25,000 from Nelson hydro to get the project started and the remainder funded by those opting in, now we are all having our pocket picked.

I have asked Mr. Love twice why has this changed, he will not answer my questions, in fact he blocked all my emails to his staff saying I was wasting their and his time.
I also made a written request to appear before city council, that was turned down.


If you read the city website its saying there is only one person against the project, that would be me, Mr. Love clearly knows my position.  

Its time for everyone to understand what is happening here, our (your) pocket will be picked for this greenwashing project.   We have already had it picked for $50,000 in solar demonstration systems grants.

I have asked Mr. Love why all Nelson hydro customers are subsidizing this project, since he (you and I are) is paying full retail for that solar power.  No answer.

T
I asked Mr. Love under whose authority and why did this change?(I asked twice, city council received a copy of my requests)   He won't answer. Nobody answered.  I asked the mayor for the report she said she was writing after her, and Mr. Love and others went to Europe's ALPs energy institute and came back with visions of solar panels for Nelson.
I have requested that  twice and received nothing.  So much for open transparent government.

This all seems to have started when our mayor met our own Dr. of climate change I didn't know we had one,  but he introduced the mayor to his friends in Austria, they have also come here to talk about partnering in some climate initiatives of some sort.

Nakusp installed 50kW microhydro on their water intake, power for 30-40 homes,   Slocan city is pursuing microhydro to mitigate the lost income from their sawmill closure.

Nelson has a completed engineering report on the 5 mile water intake for microhydro showing it would pay for all necessary upgrades and make power for our grandchildrens children.

Whats going on with this solar garden?  Who is doing this to us?  Even using the fantasy figures for power made it won't make enough power for 5 average canadian homes annually.

My position with Mr. Love has always been the same, I an an unwilling participant.

Am I the only one???   

Statements from the contractor delivering the program she says

"everyone opting in will receive a credit year round on their hydro bill" (from you and I)
I told them long ago I thought that was deceptive, it didn't change.

"its not about a pressing need for power its about starting a movement" (I know what kind of movement I am thinking of), she said it would be power parity in 7 years and payback in 10, I asked for the calculations, no reply.

"A lot of other cities are watching Nelson's project"  who are they?

"we could offer some low interest financing to those who can't afford to participate"
I bet the line up of struggling single parent families will be around the block...
keep this up that might be half this city, its becoming unaffordable to all of us.

"some of our power comes from coal"  where and when? 

The plan is to double the solar garden to a 100kW project.........

Get the movement started, start building even more solar gardens and BC Hydro or maybe Fortis will be looking at that wasted water running over the dam and go after that extra water licence water.....after all they aren't stupid, and watching green clean water running over the dam making no power.....they won't let that keep happening.     

In December the data shows it makes the same power our dam makes for $16.

3 tons of solar panels, big as a soccer field, 3600 sqft.  covered in snow, will we send the electrical crew out in December every time it snows to hopefully make that $16?