National Guard Training Center Goes Solar

This 181 kW solar array, furnished by PowerLight Corporation, will generate the equivalent electricity during the day to power 150 homes. This will provide roughly 10 percent of the facility's energy needs.

PowerLight said DMVA's 13,000 square-foot solar project is designed to generate 187,527 total kWh of electricity a year, and over the 30-year lifetime of the system, spare the environment from thousands of tons of harmful emissions such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, and sulphur dioxide, which are contributors to smog, acid rain and global warming.

The Joint Training and Training Development Center at Ft. Dix is a major training installation for Guard, reserve, and active duty troops. The DMAVA said the project is part of their ongoing effort to harness renewable energy technology, optimize efficiency and conserve natural resources.

"DMAVA is taking a bold step as one of the first government agencies in New Jersey to leverage economically viable solar energy to power its operations," said PowerLight's Project Development Manager, David Eisenbud.

It's also helpful that New Jersey currently boasts the best rebate-based solar incentives in the U.S. -- even better than California. New Jersey's solar initiatives have been recognized nationwide by the U.S. Department of Energy as being the most innovative and effective clean energy policies throughout the U.S.

According to the Mid Atlantic Solar Energy Industries Association, the booming solar industry has grown 550 percent in the last three years alone, and is creating thousands of high quality jobs throughout the State.