DC Sustainable Energy Utility Seeks Solar Contractors and Developers to Install Community Solar Projects as Part of Solar for All Program einnews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from einnews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
In 2020, California became the first state to mandate that all newly built homes, with a few exceptions, must include a rooftop solar system. Will the rest of the country follow?
At the event, District of Columbia Department of Energy & Environment (DOEE) Director Tommy Wells announced New Columbia Solar and Children’s National Hospital are 2021 District Sustainability Award co-recipients for the execution of this project, which will be recognized alongside other award recipients on April 28.
“I am pleased to celebrate this innovative, award-winning project, accomplished with our partners for the benefit of our residents and community,” said Wells. “The completion of this project by New Columbia Solar is a tremendous achievement that will not only help to meet Mayor Bowser’s climate and clean energy goals for the District, but will also help to reduce energy costs for low-income households. The District is proud to be a national leader in sustainability, and this project further demonstrates our commitment to deploying solar and developing scalable solutions in a way that prioritizes equitable access for all.”
Each canoe will come with tools to pick trash out of the water. The trash will then be cataloged as part of the effort to keep the river clean.
“The Anacostia River is cleaner than it’s been in over 50 years,” said Tommy Wells, the director of D.C.’s Department of Energy and Environment.
Wells credits the bags D.C. shoppers pay five cents each for as part of the river’s success. The money has also helped fun the Green Boats initiative.
The District raises $2 million to $2.5 million a year from the bag fee, Wells said.
“Bags used to be one-quarter of the trash that we found in our rivers and in our waterways. Now it’s barely 3 to 4%, if not less.”
From You can hit the water for free in these boats, as long as you bring back some trash. Lee Cain/Living Classrooms
toggle caption Lee Cain/Living Classrooms
The Swedish trend of picking up trash while jogging, known as plogging, has been around for a few years now. So you d expect enthusiasts to be on the lookout for the next big thing when it comes to combining exercise with environmental cleanup.
Now, D.C. is launching a Green Boats program. Residents can check out a kayak or canoe for free–if they use it to paddle the Anacostia River while collecting trash. Call it planoeing? Or playaking? (The pl in plogging comes from the Swedish plocka upp, or pick up.)