Ehab Kamarah and Madhu Khanna approved $10,000 in funding to support Agrivoltaics projects on campus.

Tim Mies sent the following email excerpt to Madhu Khanna on Feb 7, 2023:

I would like to update a bit on how this project might go forward, and ask for your thoughts on possible funding to complete this project (connect to campus grid).

Carl to date has purchased 3 solar frames which can hold up to 72 of the size panel I have in storage (from the 2007 Solar Decathlon house).  Unfortunately I have only 40 panels, which will lead to a gaps in shading with only 12 panels per structure.

My initial intention was to apply to SSC for funding to fill the space, purchase inverters, and hire electricians to connect to the campus grid.  This application would occur after the initial goal, shading research plots, is complete.

Since this last email, I was contacted by Brent Lewis at F&S regarding potential surplus panels available immediately due to a demolition project under way for the failed building the panels connect to.  The picture below shows 60 panels of larger capacity (245 watt instead of 180) that would be able to fully populate the footprint of Carl’s frames.  In addition, there are inverters and ancillary connection parts that can likely be reused to allow these panels continued production on the campus grid.

A ballpark estimate from F&S would be 5-10K to salvage all of the panels and equipment.   Do you think there would be support from Ehab to utilize carbon credit funds to at least salvage the panels and reinstall on the new frames?  I would be willing to apply to SSC again for the final connection if carbon funds could not cover this all.

Below is an email from Madhu Khanna regarding the energy farm mini agrivoltaics. 

From: Khanna, Madhu <khanna1 at illinois.edu> 
Sent: Thursday, February 09, 2023 3:37 AM
To: Kamarah, Ehab <ekamarah at illinois.edu>; White, Morgan <mbwhite at illinois.edu>
Subject: Energy Farm mini agrivoltaics

Hi Ehab

While we are waiting for doing the agrivoltaic experiments at Solar Farm 2 and build our own AV farm, Carl Bernacchi has been working on creating a small AV experiment at the Energy Farm with a few solar panels that can be set up to grow vegetables underneath. This project will generate solar energy that will be connected to the campus grid.

Tim Mies and Carl Bernacchi have sent the following information.  Carl has used his USDA funds to purchase solar frames. They have been able to acquire panels from storage and  Brent Lewis at F&S.  But need $5-10K to salvage the panels and reinstall them.

Can we approve up to $10K funds from the carbon credit fund to cover these costs? Tim plans to apply for SSC funding as well and if he gets funding then these costs can come down. We can justify it as a project that will contribute to increasing renewable energy generation in the future.

Best

Madhu

Madhu Khanna

Pronouns: she, her

Alvin H. Baum Family Chair & Director, Institute for Sustainability, Energy and Environment

ACES Distinguished Professor in Environmental Economics

Co-Director, Center for Economics of Sustainability

University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

1301, W. Gregory Drive, Urbana, IL 61801

email: khanna1@illinois.edu; phone: 217-333-5176; fax: 217-333-5538

http://ace.illinois.edu/directory/madhu-khanna

https://ceos.illinois.edu/bio-khanna

https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=LPH4gbUAAAAJ&hl=en

https://illinois.zoom.us/j/2173335176?pwd=Ri8rTzQ0S1RxZHpiY2tEWVdaSlhtZz09

_____________________________________________________________________

From: Mies, Tim <tmies at illinois.edu> 
Sent: Tuesday, February 7, 2023 1:50 PM
To: Khanna, Madhu <khanna1 at illinois.edu>
Cc: Bernacchi, Carl J <bernacch at illinois.edu>
Subject: Energy Farm mini agrivoltaics

Good Morning Madhu,

I would like to update a bit on how this project might go forward, and ask for your thoughts on possible funding to complete this project (connect to campus grid).

Carl to date has purchased 3 solar frames which can hold up to 72 of the size panel I have in storage (from the 2007 Solar Decathlon house).  Unfortunately I have only 40 panels, which will lead to a gaps in shading with only 12 panels per structure.

My initial intention was to apply to SSC for funding to fill the space, purchase inverters, and hire electricians to connect to the campus grid.  This application would occur after the initial goal, shading research plots, is complete.

Since this last email, I was contacted by Brent Lewis at F&S regarding potential surplus panels available immediately due to a demolition project under way for the failed building the panels connect to.  The picture below shows 60 panels of larger capacity (245 watt instead of 180) that would be able to fully populate the footprint of Carl’s frames.  In addition, there are inverters and ancillary connection parts that can likely be reused to allow these panels continued production on the campus grid.

A ballpark estimate from F&S would be 5-10K to salvage all of the panels and equipment.   Do you think there would be support from Ehab to utilize carbon credit funds to at least salvage the panels and reinstall on the new frames?  I would be willing to apply to SSC again for the final connection if carbon funds could not cover this all.

Please let me know if you have any additional questions or clarifications that we can provide.

Best,
Tim

Below is an email from Jack Reicherts regarding SSLC Executive Board Applications.

Ahoy mateys!

I hope this message finds ye well after our SSLC meeting on Monday. I wanted to take a moment to thank all those who were able to attend and make the meeting a success. We had a jolly good time discussing some important and exciting updates for the SSLC.

For those who missed the meeting, we discussed the upcoming Sustainability Career Panel on February 15th from 5:30 - 7:30 pm at the Campus Instructional Facility in Room 2035. We also talked about an opportunity to view a screening of the documentary "The Magic Stump" on 2/19, put on by Grand Prairie Friends and several other community groups  (We will arrange carpool (shippool?) next week, RSVP here: https://www.grandprairiefriends.org/events/the-magic-stump-bird-documentary-screening-conservation-reception). Additionally, we discussed a letter writing event on March 9th in collaboration with the Citizens Utility Board.

We also went over the process for applying to be a co-president of the SSLC, which includes a short application and an interview. Here's a short blurb if you want to promote this opportunity to your members, which I encourage you to do!

"Apply to be considered as a Co-President of the Student Sustainability Leadership Council (SSLC) and make a difference on campus! The SSLC is a student-led organization that brings together the leaders of campus sustainability and environmentalist student groups to collaborate and drive positive change. Exec board responsibilities include overseeing sustainability programming, planning meetings with member organizations, and serving as a liaison between the student body and the campus administration. The time commitment is estimated at 2-3 hours per week on average.

To apply, fill out this form (https://forms.gle/uGhFA3SYpHFTF4Nt5).  We collect your basic information, a short statement of purpose, and an endorsement from the leader of your respective sustainability organization. After submitting your application before the February 25th deadline, you will be contacted for a short interview. Any questions, comments, or concerns may be directed to sslc-chair@mx.uillinois.edu"

Lastly, we talked about our plans for Earth Month, including Green Quad Day on 4/21, a Tuesday Talk by Citizens Utility Board on April 25th with free meals for the first five attendees, and the Sustainability "Greenies" (Awaiting official approval on this name lol).

I also want to give a hearty shout out to all of our member organizations for providing us with some great updates. And remember, anyone is encouraged to use our listserv and Discord to promote any upcoming opportunities from their groups.

Thank ye again for yer attendance and contributions to the meeting. I look forward to seeing ye at our next gathering. Hit me up if you have questions, comments, concerns, or a treasure map.

Fair winds,
Jack Reicherts, Pirate Co-Captain of the SSLC.

Arrrr!