Special MVCC Green Committee Meeting on Solar Feed in Tariffs!

The Los Angeles Business Council will make a presentation to us on their proposed Solar Feed in Tariff program – see www.solarfit4la.com. The meeting will be at 6:00 PM this Thursday in room 200 at West LA Municipal Building, 1645 Corinth Ave, LA 90025 (where Councilmember Rosendahl’s office is).

A solar Feed-in Tariff program allows businesses, public and non-profit organizations, and residents to install solar panels on their roofs and parking lots and sell the power generated back to the local utility. Participants receive a payment back from the utility for each Kilowatt-hour fed back into the power grid. FiT programs can generate a cost-effective source of renewable energy, create local jobs, and bring in revenue for businesses and ratepayers. Successful FiT programs have been put in place around the world. LABC has singled out programs in Germany and Gainesville, Florida as particularly effective models that Los Angeles should look to emulate.

The Green Committee believes that Solar Feed in Tariffs are an essential component to meeting our goal of 100% clean electricity by 2018 and we are eager to hear this proposal and appreciate Councilman Rosendahl referring them to us.

“The Los Angeles Business Council is urging Councilmember Rosendahl to support the adoption of a 600 MW Solar Feed-in Tariff (FIT) program for the City of LA. LADWP General Manager Austin Beutner has announced that a FIT would be included in the Long Term Strategic Plan. The LABC, UCLA, AIA, LA Area Chamber, LA Family Housing, Sierra Club, Global Green, USGBC, Cal SEIA and the Union Roofers and Contractors Association all support this program .

Per LABC -
"We have designed a program that is large and spans 10 years because of its cost-neutrality to rate-payers (See attached FIT fundamentals page for program details). Further, the economic and environmental benefits of a 600 MW program are manifold:

• Creating 11,000 high-wage green jobs according to UCLA Luskin Center
• Attracting clean-tech industries to the region by demonstrating political
commitment to creating a green City
• Guaranteed cost saving opportunities and long-term returns for energy consumers
• State and federal tax credits to fund up to 40% of solar panel installation costs
• Using a FiT program as a critical piece to reach AB 32 renewable energy goals
• Cost saving opportunities for Multi-family affordable housing developments
• Displacing coal, which is a significant liability to the city due to its
increasing expense, legal risks, regulatory uncertainty, and public health effects

If you have any questions, please visit our website: www.solarfit4la.com to learn more about the program, listen to testimonials from local business, environmental and labor leaders and municipal utilities who have implemented successful FITs. “

Mar Vista to Partner with EPA as Green Power Community

On Tuesday the MVCC decided to partner with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to become an EPA Green Power Community.

The EPA’s Green Power Communities program recognizes cities, towns and villages in which the local government, businesses, and residents collectively buy green power in amounts that meet or exceed EPA's Green Power Community purchase requirements. The EPA has invited Mar Vista to launch a pilot version of the program that will specifically address green power purchasing in urban neighborhoods.

Pending EPA acceptance of Mar Vista into the program, the neighborhood will join a short list of two other California communities, Santa Clara and Palo Alto, who have met EPA green power purchasing guidelines.

Learn more about the EPA program and how Mar Vista can switch to 100% clean electricity through energy conservation and clean, renewable power. Mark your calendar for the Wise Power Use Expo on September 28th from 6 to 9 pm. at the solar-powered Windward School in Mar Vista.

Thank you to James Brennan for researching the program and doing an incredible job of making this possible!

All green power purchasing is completely voluntary under the EPA program, and the EPA recognizes three kinds of green power purchases:

1) Onsite Generation – federal, state, and local funding is available for installing on-site solar panels, wind turbines, and fuel cells.

2) Utility-Provided Green Power – renewable electricity consisting of 25% small hydro-electric and 75% wind power may be purchased via LADWP Green Power for a premium of $0.03/kWh. Signup as residential and small non-residential or medium and large non-residential.

3) Renewable Energy Credits - can be purchased for your home or business from certified retailers at rates ranging from $0.005/kWh to $0.03/kWh or more.


Benefits of participating in the EPA program include national recognition, expert resources and media/communications support to assist us in reaching our goal of 100% clean electricity by 2018.

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) and the EPA have provided assistance in determining Mar Vista’s electricity usage and current green power purchasing commitment. Based on EPA guidelines for a community the size of Mar Vista, three percent (3%) of neighborhood electricity must be purchased through clean, renewable sources within six months in order to qualify for the EPA Green Power Community program. According to data provided by LADWP and other sources, Mar Vista is already purchasing green power for 4.7% of neighborhood electricity – well above the 3% EPA qualifying requirement.

We look forward to joining the other forward thinking communities in this program!

Have you borrowed a Kill-A-Watt yet?

Check out the new video to help you learn how to use the Kill-A-Watt! Thank you to Carbon Reduction Services for creating this for us.

Constant Solar Electric, a solar installation company based here in Mar Vista, has generously donated 10 "Kill-A-Watt's" to the MVCC Green Committee!

These easy to use devices measure the electrical consumption of the appliances in your home. We have 10 that we continually loan out to neighborhood residents who use them to learn more about the phantom electricity that is being wasted by appliances that are plugged in while not is use. Just return them the following week they will be loaned out to 10 new people. Stop by any Sunday to borrow one!

Energy conservation can reduce your electrical bill by 15% to 20% and unplugging appliances when they are not in use will easily be half of that. We look forward to sharing reports from our neighbors as they use these!

Another tip - invest in Smart Strips for areas like your entertainment center or desk - where some appliances need to stay on (perhaps your computer or cable box) while others can shut down (video games, printers, sound systems).