Washington Gov. Jay Inslee recently visited a Clark Public Utilities community solar facility site in the state.
Inslee on Jan. 5 visited the public power utility’s Community Solar East at the Port of Camas-Washougal.
“This is a personal joy to me. It’s giving us optimism for our state,” Inslee said during a tour of the project, according to a recent article in the Columbian, a Vancouver, Wash., newspaper.
Community Solar East, Clark Public Utilities’ newest community solar project, is located across the rooftops of five buildings owned by the Port of Camas-Washougal.
Community Solar East is expected to begin generating solar energy this month.
Clark Public Utilities said that the 799-kW community project is being built for a cost of less than $1.70 per installed watt.
“At Clark Public Utilities’ our board and our staff have been consistent supporters of renewable energy projects, including Community Solar, and have worked to site projects on behalf of our customers in Clark County,” said Lena Wittler, CEO and General Manager at Clark Public Utilities.
“We appreciate the sustained and sincere interest and enthusiasm both within the utility and from customers that began when we built our first Community Solar project in 2015, and now with the partnership at the Port of Camas-Washougal on Community Solar East that includes a dedicated array to benefit low-income customers through the Operation Warm Heart program,” she said.
“That element was made possible by recent legislation that allowed flexibility to work within an existing program like Operation Warm Heart to deliver meaningful value, equitably, to people in need, with a low administrative burden,” Wittler said.
