The Lumberjack



Students Serving The Cal Poly Humboldt Campus and Community Since 1929

Tag: Schatz Energy Research Center

  • Schatz Lab researches local wind energy opportunities

    Schatz Lab researches local wind energy opportunities

    On a clear night someday in the future, you might look out across the ocean from Trinidad or Clam Beach and see small points of light way out in the distance. And the source for those points of light could be supplying all your electricity.

    The Schatz Energy Research Lab is an affiliate of HSU’s Environmental Resources Engineering program which seeks to study and educate the public about clean energy. They are in the process of investigating a possible offshore wind energy project.

    “We have the best wind resource in the United States,” said Maia Cheli, the communications and outreach manager for the Schatz Energy Research Lab.

    A possible wind energy project could have wide reaching ramifications for both Humboldt County and California as a whole.

    “There are so many reasons to support the development of clean, renewable energy: so that we can breathe healthy air, drink clean water, restore ecosystems, and slow climate change,” Cheli said. “But our critical energy questions don’t stop at how we generate energy – they also include who has access to electricity, how reliable that electricity is, how much it costs, and how well it supports communities. Bringing these outlooks together is the only way for us to build responsible, equitable energy systems.”

    The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management designated a region 20-30 miles off Humboldt Bay a possible site for an offshore wind farm. The farm would look like a number of floating wind turbines anchored with mooring lines. These turbines would convert wind energy to electrical energy.

    “You have the tower, you have the nacelle, and you have the blades, and so the wind blows on the blades and the blades are converting that in through the generator into electrical energy which then passes back down through the tower and connects in with some kind of a cabling system,” Cheli said.

    A possible project couldn’t just be a set of wind turbines, it would have to include upgrades to Humboldt’s current infrastructure, from our marine ports to current transmission capabilities.

    A wind farm that would produce enough energy to be cost effective would produce more energy than we could use, so it would have to be exported out of the area.

    “What we know of the system is that whether we develop medium or large-scale generation, it will require significant upgrades to the local transmission system,” said Marco Rios, the transmission system planning manager at PG&E. “And that really is because the current grid in this region was not designed to export generation outside of the area.”

    There are more variables like the possible environmental impact of the construction, regular function, and maintenance of the wind turbines.

    The data needed to predict environmental impacts of a wind farm doesn’t exist in full yet, and that’s what the Schatz Lab is working on.

    “There’s not a lot of people that far offshore sitting there and counting seabirds all the time, so we’re working on that right now with the seabird 3D study,” Cheli said.

    But those possible consequences have to be balanced with the consequences of a failure to reach emissions goals.

    Garry George, the clean energy director at the National Audubon Society, spoke about the possible impact on birds at the offshore wind energy webinar.

    “Our science team revealed in a study released last year that three degrees of warming will likely drive 389 species of North American birds to extinction because they’ll lose their wintering and breeding territories due to climate change,” George said. “So it is exciting to have a new resource, a new technology to add to our quiver of climate arrows here in California, like offshore wind, to get us to 100% clean and net zero emissions. This is critical for birds and it’s critical for people.”

    A large-scale project would also have larger social implications. Some of the possible new infrastructure may need to be built on Wiyot land.

    “In general, the Wiyot Tribe has long supported renewable energy development that is well sited, and are open minded and excited about the potential for offshore wind on the north coast,” Wiyot Natural Resource Specialist Adam Canter said at a public offshore wind energy webinar. “Especially the community-based approach and stakeholder involvement that this group of partners is taking early on during the planning process.”

    For now, the feasibility of an offshore wind farm is still being studied. Community input is still being gathered, and nothing is set in stone.

    “The Schatz Center is not committed to any trajectory. We are committed to providing good information so that good decisions can be made,” Cheli said. “I think the more that people can become informed about, you know, the impacts on the opportunities of any particular pursuit related to energy, the better decisions we can make for ourselves and for the planet as a whole.”

  • Microgrid is in the works

    Microgrid is in the works

    Schatz Energy Research Center at Humboldt State was awarded a $5 million grant. The money is going to be used to build a microgrid at the Arcata-Eureka Airport in Mckinleyville. Peter Lehman, director of Schatz, said he was overjoyed when the good news broke.

    “Everybody was high-fiving and hugging,” Lehman said. “It is a big deal for us, and a big win.”

    Lehman spent about three months working on a proposal for the grant with his colleagues.

    “It was really competitive,” Lehman said. “The California Energy Commission only funded one proposal out of ten. There was a lot of universities that didn’t get funded, and we did.”

    The microgrid will be composed of a 2.3-megawatt photovoltaic array, or solar power system, and cover nine acres.

    “It is one thing to have an idea, but it’s gotta be based in reality,” Lehman said. “First you have to conceive the idea, flesh out the idea and decide what partners need to be assembled. It’s not easy.”

    Redwood Coast Energy Authority, or RCEA, partnered with Schatz, matching $6 million in funds to help the project. Executive director of the RCEA Matthew Marshall is optimistic about the project.

    “We were waiting to hear back from the Schatz Center to see if they received the grant before submitting the application for the loan, but it’s now in the works,” Marshall said. “I’m optimistic.”

    The RCEA is financing the upfront costs of the project with a low-interest loan from the United States Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service.

    “We’ve got a goal to support the development of local solar projects,” Marshall said. “The project is pushing the envelope. It’s exciting being on the forefront.”

    In addition to generating green electricity, the microgrid will create jobs for locals.

    “Somebody has to pour the concrete, drive the post into the ground to mount solar panels and run the wires,” Lehman said.

    In an emergency situation, the airports and United States Coast Guard could run for hours off energy gained from the microgrid .

    “The airport and the Coast Guard are really important,” Lehman said. “The Coast Guard can’t fly if the airport doesn’t have electricity.”

    RCEA owns the solar array and PG&E owns the wires, but who gets paid what for the electricity produced? How do customers get charged for that?

    “It’s all new, its never come up before,” Lehman said. “We are going to be plowing some new ground trying to figure that out.”

    The project is expected to begin this summer. PG&E will do a number of tests after the completion of the first multi-customer microgrid.

    “PG&E is careful about what goes on their grid,” Lehman said. “There are a number of tests we will have to pass with them, looking over our shoulder to make sure that is it safe.”

    PG&E communications representative Ari Vanrenen said PG&E is committed to clean energy.

    “We are a community partner dedicated to building a better, more sustainable future for all Californians,” Vanrenen said. “This includes understanding and responding to the different needs of our customers and communities.”

    Once the microgrid is established, the Schatz Center will spend a year writing reports on how it works and share their findings.

    “Lessons we learn are going to be valuable for other people. That’s how progress happens in technology,” Lehman said . “You do things and try something. You tell people about it. The next time you build it, you are a little smarter and you do a better job.”