OREGON MSR COALITIONBEGINS DRIVE FOR 50,000 SOLAR ROOFS

Volume 2, Issue 2March 1999

On January 14, 1999, the Oregon Mil-lion Solar Roof (MSR) Coalition heldits initial meeting to introduce the coali-tion members, discuss Oregon’s roll inthe national MSR Partnership, and tobegin developing plans to strengthen thesolar industry in the state and to removethe barriers to installing 50,000 solarroofs in Oregon by 2010.

Over twenty five leading solar advo-cates from across the state and invitedguess from Washington and as far awayas Colorado participated in this meetingin Portland. As a key person who helpedpulled the meeting together, CurtisFramel led off with introductions andset the tone for the meeting. The OregonMSR Coalition is in partnership with theNational MSR program. If all the part-ner work together sharing ideas, exper-tise, and resources the goal of building a

MESSAGE FROM THEPRESIDENT

By Frank Vignola

Keeping up the pace set by pastpresident David Parker will notbe easy. Of course many of theprojects that he started such asOregon’s involvement in theMillion Solar Roofs initiativewill keep things moving along.

A considerable amount has hap-pened in the last few months.First, elections were held for theOSEIA officers at the January12th OSEIA meeting. Withpromises of support from OS-EIA members, I accepted thenomination as President of OS-EIA and was duly elected.Doug Boleyn of Cascade SolarConsulting was elected vicechair. On January 30, Doug wasalso elected Chair of the SolarEnergy Association of Oregon.It has been the goal of bothorganization to work moreclosely together and this is agood opportunity. Ray Pokornyof Solar Interior Design waselected treasure for anotherterm. Ray’s work is very muchappreciated. The slate of offi-cers was completed by the re-election of Chris Eames of En-ergy Service Company as secre-tary. OSEIA and I are fortunateto have a solid line of officersthe help run the organization.More information on the Jan-

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Solar Power at the Oregon Million Solar Roof Coalition’s initial organizationmeeting. From left to right Dick Wanderscheid of the City of Ashland, William Nesmitfrom the Oregon Office of Energy, Curtis Framel from the Regional DOE Office inSeattle, Christopher Dymond for OOE, and Tom Starrs from Starrs, Kelso, andAssociates.

strong self sustaining solar industry andinstall one million solar roofs across thenation by 2010 can be accomplished.

Terry Esvelt of the Bonneville PowerAdministration lead off the workshop bydiscussing financial and technical skillsthat Bonneville can bring to bear on

(Continued on page 10)

Table of Contents

Oregon MSR Coalition begins drive for 50,000 Solar Roofs 1

Message from the President 1

OSEIA April 6, 1999 Meeting Agenda 2

1999 - Solar Legislation 3

Mr. Sun Installs 3K Residential System 4

Oregon MSR Coalition May 13, 1999 Meeting Agenda 5

OSEIA Meeting Minutes 6

PV Workshop 8

Oregon MSR Coalition Proposal to US DOE 11

Web Page

OSEIA MEETING

AGENDA

DIRECTIONS TO THEOREGON OFFICE OF ENERGY

SOLAR RISING is the newsletterof the Oregon Solar Energy Indus-tries Association (OSEIA). OSEIAis Oregon’s local chapter of theSolar Energy Industries Associa-tion. The information presented inthis newsletter reflects the opinionsof the authors and not necessarilythose of OSEIA.

The success of the newsletter de-pends upon your contributions.This is an opportunity to tell theOSEIA members about your activi-ties and to express your opinions.Photographs or figures to accom-pany articles are most appreciated.Articles of current and timely inter-est will be given highest priority.Otherwise, articles will be pub-lished on a first come basis as roomallows.

Send your contributions to:Frank VignolaDepartment of Physics1274 - University of OregonEugene, Oregon 97403-1274Phone: (541) 346-4745Fax: (541) 346-5861Email: fev@darkwing.uoregon.edu

We would like to thank Doug Bo-leyn of Cascade Solar Consulting,Chris Eames of Energy ServiceCompany and John Patterson of Mr.Sun for their contributions to thenewsletter.

President: Frank Vignola of Univ. ofOregon Solar Monitoring Lab. Ph: (541)346-4745Vice President: Doug Boleyn of Cas-cade Solar Consulting Ph: (503) 655-1617Secretary: Chris Eames of Energy Ser-vice Company, Ph: (541) 302-6808Treasurer: Ray Pokorny of Solar Inte-rior Design, Ph: (503) 224-2322

OSEIA MEMBERS ON THE INTERNETCompany Email Address

Renewable Energy, Inc.Stellar ProcessesSunearth Inc.Heliodyne Inc.Cascade Solar ConsultingOregon Office of EnergySolar Design & ConstructionSolar Interior DesignBobcat and Sun ConstructionEnergy OutfittersHome Power MagazineMr. Sun SolarThe Energy Service CompanyUO Solar Monitoring LabR.V. Solar ConsultantsSolar DepotEmerald People’s Utility DistrictEugene Water & Electric Board

DMZL49@ aol.comdrobison@teleport.comsunearth@lava.netheliodyne@worldnet.att.netSolarbee@aol.comChristopher.S.Dymond@state.or.ussolarman@peak.orgsolarint@imagina.combobcat@empnet.comsupport@energyoutfitters.comhp@homepower.org70663.2146@compuserve.comesco@efn.orgfev@darkwing.uoregon.edutech@rvsolar.comsolardepot@calweb.comjoe@epud.orgdon.spiek@eweb.eugene.or.us

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.........www.cbs.state.or.us/external/ooe/...........................www.energyoutfitters.comwww.homepower.org.........www.efn.org/~escosolardata.uoregon.eduwww.rvsolar.comwww.solardepot.comwww.epud.org/about.htmleweb.org

Oregon Office of Energy625 Marion, Salem

12:00 - 3:00 PM4/6/1999

1. Welcome and Introductions:Frank Vignola

2. Approval of Minutes:Chris Eames

3. Treasurer's Report:Ray Pokorny

4. OSEIA Corporate StatusWindy Johnson

5. OSEIA BylawsDoug Boleyn

6. Solar Legislation UpdateRichard Perez

7. Million Solar Roofs Coalition UpdateFrank Vignola

8. May 13, 1999 meeting of the OregonMSR Coalition

9. Million Solar Roof RegistryChristopher Dymond

10. Health and Disability Insurance Andrew Koyanisquatsi

11. Other business

12. Adjourn

The April meeting of OSEIA will beheld at the Oregon Office of Energy at625 Marion in Salem. The OOE officesare located on the north west side of thecapitol. The easiest way to get to theoffice is to take the Market street exitand turn south on Summer and then weston Marion. Pizza will be ordered.

OSEIA Officers

Before, after, or during the Salem meet-ing will be a good time to set up ameeting with your representative and/orsenator. Tell them about OSEIA andtalk to them about the net metering andsolar tax credit legislation that is beforethe legislature. See article on the solarlegislation being presented in Salem(pg. 3).

E-MAILE-MAIL

House Bill 2954 would repeal the solartax credit. This bill is one of a series ofbills that repeal various tax credits. Thebills that repeal tax credits are de-signed to free up funds for schools.(HB 2949 would tax payments madeby utilities for installed conservation.)HB 2954 will appear before the rev-enue committee. The chair of the rev-enue committee is RepresentativeStrobeck. If opposition to the repeal of

Without counting the discussion on util-ity restructuring, three bills that directlyaffect the solar industry have beenintroduced in the House.

These bills are:

HB 3219 - the Net Metering bill intro-duced by OSEIA.

HB 2954 - a bill that would repeal thesolar energy tax credit.

HB 2878 - a bill introduced by BrentGunderson to increase the solar taxcredits for grid tied residential PV sys-tems to $3 per peak watt installed.

House Bill 2878 would significantlyincrease the solar tax credit to $3 perpeak watt installed for grid tied resi-dential Photovoltaic systems. A maxi-mum credit of $9,000 is allowed. Toqualify a system must be installed by a“certified contractor”, be 300 watts orlarger and be connected to the utilitygrid. A certified contractor is a con-tractor that has obtained a contractorsystem certification under ORS469.170. This bill is sponsored by Rep-resentative Deckert at the request ofBrent Gunderson.

The bill had its first hearing March 10,1999 at a commerce subcommittee. Asecond hearing was held March 15,1999 and another hearing is scheduledsoon. In attendance to testify for theMarch 10 hearing were RepresentativeDeckert, Brent Gunderson, Frank Vig-nola (representing OSEIA), Doug Bo-leyn (representing SEA of O), BrianBowman a local PV system homeowner, and Michael Grainey, from theOregon Office of Energy.

Brian Bowman’s testimony as a privatecitizen who has installed a PV systemon his home was most effective. Brianflew in the Gulf war and thinks renew-ables are preferable to fighting warsover oil.

1999 - SOLAR LEGISLATION

Personal contact always carries themost weight. To visit your representa-tive, call the office and schedule a 15minute appointment. Make it a friendlyvisit. Bring a copy of the informationyou want the representative to know.Next best is to write a letter and tell therepresentative what you would likethem to support and why. Ask themwhat action they are planning to takeon the measure. A phone call to yourrepresentative is always helpful. This isespecially good if the issue is going tobe in front of your representative. Afax is as good as a letter. This fax willgo in the file on the bill. If the repre-sentative has not already made up theirmind on an issue, they go to their fileand review the information in the filebefore they vote. Currently email is thelast resort. A staff person may or maynot read their email. Remember, actnow before it is too late!

HOW TO INFLUENCE YOURREPRESENTATIVE

OR SENATOR

NET METERINGUPDATE

The net metering bill has been intro-duced, but has yet to receive its firsthearing. The bill, HB 3219, will beheard in the commerce committee.Comments on the bill should be ad-dress to Representative Witt, head ofthe commerce subcommittee that willhear the bill.

Alternately, you can write your repre-sentative asking for support and send acopy to Witt. If your representativesends you a letter saying he will sup-port the bill, let Richard Perez know.

Peter West of Renewable NorthwestProject and their lobbyist Tom Novickhave been leading the legislativeagenda for the bill.

Peter West and Tom Starrs have madeinitial contacts with utilities. Aftersome preliminary concerns the bill hasreceived positive responses from someutilities and the PUC. The City of Ash-land, which already has a net meterpolicy and the Eugene Water and Elec-tric Board are among the utilities thatsupport the legislation. A considerableeffort still remains to line up utilitiesbehind the bill or at least prevent themfrom opposing the bill.

BILL TO REPEALTHE SOLAR TAX CREDIT

INCREASING PVTAX CREDITS

the solar tax credit is loud and fast, thebill may die before it gets a hearing.

Everyone knows what the repeal of thesolar tax credits will do to the solarindustry. It is important to let yourrepresentative know along with Repre-sentative Strobeck. Many of the repre-sentatives support the solar tax credits.However support is not universal.

Some, like Representative Welsh, whoown a solar heating system, will likelyoppose the repeal.

cuit breaker box thus metering all solargenerated energy to the King’s home and/or grid. Doug Boleyn of Cascade SolarConsulting assisted with technical supportfor the project.

MR. SUNINSTALLS 3KRESIDENTIAL

SYSTEM

By John Patterson

The King Ranch in North Plain Oregon,near Hillsboro, is the site where thelargest residential solar electric systemin Oregon has just been completed. Thehome owners opted for the Uni-Solarintegrated roofing type PV panels whichcovers the carport roof. The grid-tiedsystem should meet the full annual elec-tric load of the King’s 2,000 plus sq. ft.new home which also features a solarhot water, and a passive solar homedesign with reflection pool in front ofthe south facing windows. The systemcosting over $30,000 came on line De-cember 18, 1998 when John Pattersonthrew the switch. A meter was installedbetween the trace inverter and the cir-

Photos by Doug Boleyn of Cascade Solar Consult-

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

uary 12 meeting can be found in theminutes by Christopher Eames (on page6).

On January 14, 1999 OSEIA and theUSDOE held the initial kickoff meetingfor the Oregon Million Solar RoofsCoalition. This newsletter will containseveral articles describing the January14th meeting and relating to the activi-ties of the coalition. Six committeeswere formed to evaluate the barriers toinstalling 50,000 solar roofs in Oregonby 2010. Several of the committeeshave already been active in developinga Million Solar Roofs proposal that wassubmitted by the Oregon Office of En-ergy. If funded, this proposal will ener-gize the Oregon MSR Coalition andstart making important steps in promot-ing and building a stronger solar indus-try in Oregon.

OSEIA’s net metering bill has beenintroduced through Richard Perez’s ef-forts as leader of OSEIA net meteringcommittee. Peter West of RenewablesNorthwest and Tom Starrs have con-tributed considerable expertise and ef-fort into guiding the net metering pro-

(Continued from page 1)

The status of the Oregon Office ofEnergy - Oregon MSR Coalition pro-posal will then be presented (see pg.11). The success of the proposalshould be announced by the end ofApril. If the proposal is approved,then a discussion of the implementa-tion will be held. If the proposal is notfunded, then reviews will be evalu-ated.

A report on the activities of otherMSR partners will be made by CurtisFramel. It is important that the na-tional partners start working together.How this cooperation will be accom-plished will be a major item for dis-cussion.

will break for lunch. The afternoon ses-sion will run from 1:00 pm to about 3:00pm.

All OSEIA members and Oregon MSRCoalition members are invited to attend.Also any of those who are interested injoining the coalition should attend.

These are preliminary plans for theagenda. After the April 17-21 SolTechmeeting a more comprehensive agendawill be developed. To make suggestionsfor the agenda, contact your committeechair or Frank Vignola.

After introductions, the coalition com-mittees will present their reports onMSR barrier and actions needed to over-come these barriers. It is from thesereports that the action plan will be de-veloped.

On Thursday, May 13, 1999 the OregonMSR Coalition will hold its secondmeeting at the Eugene Water and Elec-tric Board’s conference room. The mainfocus of the meeting will be to developan action plan for the Oregon MSRCoalition for 1999.

The meeting will begin at 10:00 am and

OREGON MILLION SOLAR ROOFS COALITION MAY 13, 1999 AGENDA

posal through the legislative process.Renewable Northwest’s lobbyist, TomNovick has also been invaluable helpingto introduce the net metering bill.

While evaluating OSEIA’s status to joinEFO, it was determined that the bylawsneed to be updated and the tax exemptstatus of OSEIA needs to be firmly es-tablished. Doug Boleyn is looking at thebylaws and will make a report at theApril 6th OSEIA meeting.

Windy Johnson of Oregon Solar hasvolunteered to evaluate the tax exemptstatus of OSEIA and hopefully will havea preliminary report by the April meet-ing.

To cap things off, Brent Gunderson re-ported that the solar tax credits are seri-ously under attack in the Oregon legisla-ture. We are fortunate to have the eyesand ears of Brent focused on the legisla-ture. A more comprehensive descriptionof the situation is presented on page 3.

Brent also introduced legislation to in-crease the solar tax credit for grid tiedsystems. These systems are still very

expensive and more assistance isneeded for those willing to invest inthese renewable energy systems.

Keep in touch as a lot is happening onthe solar front these days.

which was written by Tom Starrs, J.D.,Ph.D., of Energy Environment Re-sources in Vashon, Washington. Asponsor is still being sought for itsintroduction.

Christopher Dymond relayed com-ments by Michael Grainey, OOEs lob-byist, suggesting that minimization ofcontroversy among key players(notably PGE and PacifiCorp) prior tothe legislative session would be crucialto OOE support of the bill. John Sav-age, OOE Director, has stated that theyare in favor of net metering, but needsutility support to enlist OOE backing ofthe bill. Without consensus, the bill willreceive polite - but not serious consid-eration. Peter West, of RenewablesNorthwest, has relayed that we mightuse their lobbyist, Tom Novick, in theeffort. The group agreed that we needto line up a lobbyist for our interests atonce. Christopher Dymond and TomScott seconded that within the week alobbyist be hired and within the monthFrank Vignola, Richard Perez, and thelobbyist to be hired meet and finalizethe language for the bill. The motionwas passed without dissent.

An upcoming meeting of rural electricutilities to discuss the bill will be at-tended by Christopher Dymond andFrank Vignola. Call Frank or Richard ifyou wish to participate in making thisbill a reality.

6. Million Solar Roofs Update.

Discussion about how the OSEIA“sponsorship” has been modified onto acoalition of state, local, and industrygroups. There is currently $190,000 ofDOE funds for 15 groups, of which weare one, to market the program to lever-age more participation in the MSR Ini-tiative. It is not for study nor is it forimplementation of solar projects. A

meeting in Portland on January 14 willbe held to “kick-off” the program andto delegate responsibilities within thecoalition to identify opportunities, de-velop strategies, define barriers and toformulate plans for overcoming them.Attending from OSEIA will be com-mittee members Christopher Dymond,Richard Perez, Don Speik, DavidParker, Joe Savage, and Frank Vignola,chairperson. Others are expected to at-tend and a report will be given in thenext newsletter and at the next meeting.Christopher Dymond moved and RayPokorny seconded that SEA of O beinvited to become a member of thepartnership and that other appropriategroups or members be included by voteof OSEIA’s MSRI committee. Thispassed unanimously. Don Speik movedthat any proposals for dispersal of DOEfunds be submitted for approval byOSEIA’s MARI Committee. DavidParker seconded. This also passedwithout dissent.

7. Education Coordinators

David Parker had proposed in thenewsletter and again at the meeting thathe and Tom Scott be allowed to con-tinue their work with LCC and NWEEIas official representatives of OSEIA.Don Speik seconded the motion and itpassed unanimously.

(Continued on page 7)

OSEIA ANNUAL MEETING MINUTESTUESDAY JANUARY 12, 1999 12:30-3:00 PM

OREGON ELECTRIC STATION EUGENE, OR.by Chris Eames

1. Welcome and Introductions

Members attending: David Parker,Tom Scott, Ray Pokorny, Wendy John-son, Don Speik, Newt Loken, DougBoleyn, Christopher Diamond, FrankVignola, & Chris Eames. Several mem-bers sent proxies for purposes of vot-ing.

2. Minutes of the September 29, 1998General Membership Meeting

Moved seconded and approved unani-mously to approve the minutes as pub-lished through the newsletter.

3. Treasurer's Report

Ray Pokorny reports balance on handof $1,348.00, receivables of approxi-mately $6,042.00, and $2,312.68 in netmetering fund. He distributed invoicesfor membership dues to those attend-ing. Others will be mailed soon. Reim-bursement for the national SEIA tripwas finally made by SEIA in Decem-ber.

4. Election of Officers

President David Parker announced thathe will be unable to repeat in his office,pointing out that “new blood” has keptOSEIA active and opened nominationsfor all offices. Don Speik nominatedFrank Vignola for President, TomScott seconded. Don Speik nominatedDoug Boleyn for Vice President, ChrisEames seconded. David Parker nomi-nated Chris Eames for Secretary, TomScott seconded. Wendy Johnson wasnominated for Treasurer but declined.She then nominated Ray Pokorny, DonSpeik seconded. Frank, Doug, Chris,and Ray were all elected unanimously.

5. Net Metering Bill Update.

Richard Perez could not attend themeeting and was therefore unable toreport on the status of the current bill tobe introduced, the current draft of

It’s time to get ready for this year’sRenewable Energy Fair at the Univer-sity of Oregon brought to you by TheSolar Information Center! We’re go-ing to have live music with a solarpowered stage and lots of great boothsand activities. On Friday April 23 at12:00 noon in the Erb MemorialUnion Amphitheater be a part of theaction as demonstrations of Photo-voltaic Power and electric vehiclescombine with groovin music andbooths, food vendors, Y2K solutionsand lots more. This year’s sponsorsinclude Real Goods Inc., Eugene Wa-ter and Electric Board, Home PowerMagazine and Prana Electric. Don’tmiss the SOL Machine integrated Pho-tovoltaic living system and all thegood vibes as we celebrate EarthWeek by connecting with mother na-ture for an energizing experience!

See you There!

Neil J. PetersonEvents Coordinator(541) 346-3696strider9@gladstone.uoregon.edu

Recycling Hotline, 503-234-3000,and on-line at www.efo .org/earth-day. It's the official guide that in-forms potential volunteers aboutEarth Day projects and events.

• Visit the Earth Day ‘99 website atwww.efo.org/earthday for projectideas and to register a project on-line (deadline for project registra-tion is March 1).

• Earth Day is an independent pro-ject of the Environmental Federa-tion of Oregon. Representativesfrom environmental organizations,schools, and local and regionalgovernments make up the SteeringCommittee providing the guidanceand structure necessary to coordi-nate the regional celebration.

• Earth Day is funded by supportfrom local businesses and govern-ments, as well as communitygroups.

For more information, contact SuziePuetz, Earth Day ‘99, (503) 284-0433or visit www.efo.org/earthday

OSEIA ANNUAL MEETING MINUTES

8. OOE Report

Christopher Dymond is working tobring together the many interested par-ties of interest in solar energy. Severaleducation and solar implementationprograms which may be funded by thefederal DOE are in the works and hewill be reporting about those as theyare approved. E-mail him with ideasfor such project proposals.

9. Health and Disability Insurance

Andrew Koyaaisquatsi was unable toattend. $30 per month will buy groupdisability insurance which provides$1000/month. A questionnaire will besent out by the company within two

(Continued from page 6) weeks to individual members to deter-mine our group rate. An additional re-port will be made next meeting.

10. Other Business

Doug Speik moved, Doug Boleyn sec-onded that all records be assembled andmaintained by the Secretary, and that anaccountant be consulted regarding fidu-ciary reporting consistent with our non-profit status.

11. OSEIA NEWSLETTER! Send arti-cles and ideas to Frank Vignola at:

Frank Vignola Physics Department 1274 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1274

Phone (541-356-4745) email: fev@darkwing.uoregon.edu)

Copy Deadline for the Spring newslet-ter is March 6, 1999.

12. The next meeting will be at noonon April 6, 1999 in Salem at theForestry Center. Much important infor-mation regarding net metering and Mil-lion Solar Roofs Initiative will beshared at this meeting and your partici-pation is strongly encouraged! BEthere!

• Earth Day ‘99 is the region’s largestcoordinated environmental effort in-volving thousands of people in thelocal area and around Oregon. EarthDay ‘99, based in Portland, OR.,serves as a clearinghouse for infor-mation by providing overall coordi-nation of activities, promoting in-volvement in Earth Day and build-ing awareness of sustainable ideasand actions.

• Earth Day is April 22, but the spiritof Earth Day runs throughout themonth of April. Many activities andprojects occur during Earthweek,beginning Saturday, April 17.

• Since 1995, more than 75,000 vol-unteers throughout the Portland-Vancouver area have turned out totake specific actions to celebrateEarth Day. Volunteers have partici-pated in a variety of hands-on pro-jects that range from stream clean-ups and schoolyard tree plantings tobackyard composting and watershedprotection seminars.

• Every activity planned for EarthDay ‘99 will be listed in the annualEarth Day, Everyday Hands-OnGuide, available inside The Orego-nian on April 6, by calling the Metro

FACTS FOR EARTH DAY 1999 RENEWABLE ENERGY FAIR ‘99EUGENE, OR.

Christopher Dymond and RogerEbbage are providing a workshop withPGE on Energy 10, the current solardesign tool out by PSIC. Its a great toolfor the pre-design stages of a project.Of 16 spots only four are left. Theworkshop will be in Portland on May21-22, 1999. The cost of the workshop

PHOTOVOLTAICS IN BUILDINGSSOLAR ELECTRIC ARCHITECTURE: DESIGN GUIDANCE FOR PRACTICING PROFESSIONALS

the landscape• PV Systems Configuration

Utility Interactive & Stand Alone:key design issues, load analysis, so-lar resource, array design, storage

• Details of PV Building IntegrationIntegration options, array mountingdetails, design elements, building &landscape integration

• Case Studies of Residential & Com-mercial PV Powered BuildingsSystem sizing & storage parame-ters, construction process

• Codes, Economics, and IncentivesElectrical, mechanical, & structuralcodes, O&M issues, incentives &economics

• Array Design Exercise• Products, Questions & Discussion

The workshop cost is $95.00. The reg-istration includes the program and ma-terials, break refreshments, and Steve’sbook, The Solar Electric House.

Sponsors include:

Portland General Electric

AIA/Portland Architecture + EnergyAIA/Portland Committee on theEnvironmentSolar Energy Association of OregonOregon Solar Energy Industries Assoc.Oregon Million Solar Roofs CoalitionU of O Solar Information CenterCascade Solar Consulting

More information on the workshop isavailable at NEEI’s website http://www.nweei.org/ (check under What’sNew). Further inquires can be made bycalling 1-800-769-9687 or emailing toNEEI@lanecc.edu.

The Northwest Energy Education In-stitute (NEEI) is sponsoring a Photo-voltaics Professional Design Work-shop. The one-day workshop will coverboth residential and commercial appli-cations and will be held in Portland onApril 30 at Two World Trade Center(seating for about 200). It will featureSteven J. Strong, who is the author ofThe Solar Electric House and who hasbeen named an Environmental Hero byTime Magazine.

Agenda Overview

• PV Cell and Module TechnologyModule construction, crystalline vs.thin film, environmental aspects

• PV Systems Options & Applica-tionsStand alone, batteries, central ar-rays & storage, utility interactiveoptions, central station systems

• PV in Buildings: A WorldOverviewTechnology options, commercialcurtain walls & glass roofs, residen-tial roof systems, sunshades, PV in

SOLWEST RENEWABLEENERGY FAIR IN JOHN DAY, OR.

JULY 24-25, 1999For More Information Contact:

Jennifer BarkerEORenew/SolWest FairPO Box 485Canyon City, OR 97820541/542-2525email: solwest@eoni.com

is only $250 and with that you getsoftware.

For more information contact NEEI at1-800-769-9687 or email toNEEI@lanecc.edu.

ENERGY 10 WORKSHOP

By 2020 the world’s oil production isprojected to decrease by 20%. Produc-tion of oil from outside the PersianGulf is expected to decrease by over50% by 2020. With demand for oilincreasing, and world production likelyto peak in the next 5 to 10 years, thedays of cheap oil appear to be ending.Already OPEC is beginning to flex itsmuscle to raise the record low oilprices. Of course price increases willeventually reduce oil consumption tomatch the supply. However, the de-mand for energy is predicted to keepincreasing for the foreseeable future.

April 17-21, 1999

Hyatt Crown CenterKansas City, MO

Come to the Largest Solar Gathering inthe World:

• Meet the Industry

• See the Newest Solar Products

• Learn about Grass Roots Solar Pro-grams

• Make International Solar Contacts

• Attend Valuable Workshops

• HAVE FUN!

The combined annual solarevents of:Solar Energy Industries AssociationInterstate Renewable Energy CouncilUtility PhotoVoltaic GroupHeartland Solar Energy Industries As-sociation

For Further Information: email SharonWilson, SEIA or call (202) 383-2600

For Hotel Reservations:Hyatt Regency Crown Center 2345McGee Street Kansas City, MO 64108Telephone: (800) 233-1234Mention Solar Energy to receive theconference discount!

http://www.seia.org/main.htm

SOLTECH ‘99 THE TIMES THEY ARE A CHANGIN’

Coal and natural gas are ready to fillthe gap. If solar is going to play animportant role, the solar industry muststart preparing today. With global cli-mate change starting to affect theweather, people are going to have tomake some hard choices in order toavoid an environmental disaster. Asthe solar industry grows and sustain-able orderly development takes hold,solar will become the economic andenvironment solution.

Plan for the future.

Act today!

Annual Oil Production from “The End of Cheap Oil” by Colin J. Campbell andJean H. Laerrère, Scientific American, March 1998. The top curve is world oilproduction, the next curve is world production outside the Persian Gulf. Theworld oil production will peak around 2004 and the peak production outsidethe Persian Gulf appears imminent. The oil production in the United States andCanada peaked in 1972 and has decreased by about 20% since that time.

SOLAR ENERGYASSOCIATION OF OREGON

ANNUAL CONFERENCEOCTOBER 2, 1999

WORLD TRADE CENTER-2PORTLAND, OREGON

Conference speakers and other detailsare being developed - stay tuned!

consumers to take part in theseprograms.

Tom Starrs talked about the netmetering bill that is being intro-duced in Oregon. Then MikeNelson told the story of what ishappening in Washington.These stories included how thenet metering bill got universalsupport in Washington and howthe solar industry is successfullymarketing solar energy. If solarcan succeed in Washington, cer-tainly it can work in Oregon.

There was a break for a working lunch.In fact, the several breaks were used toget to know each other better and toshare ideas and information. This is thetype of activity needed to bring to-gether a cohesive plan to install 50,000solar roofs in Oregon.

After lunch there was a talk by BillMcNamee who discussed the Oregon’sPUC perspective on solar energy.Wayne Lei from Portland GeneralElectric discussed some of their activeswith roof top photovoltaic systems andtheir efforts to evaluate grid tied PVsystems. Mike Grainey of OOE talkedmore about the state renewable energyprograms. Steve Still of EWEB thenpresented EWEB’s bright way to heatwater program. While EWEB’s pro-gram has been established for awhile, itis evolving and improving.

Dick Wanderscheid then detailed Ash-land’s Solar City Program. Ashland has

embarked on an exciting pro-gram to encourage the installa-tion of PV systems on its rooftops. The group was upbeatabout all the solar activity be-ginning to take place in Oregon.However, all these programshave been operating indepen-dently. It will be interesting tosee what will happen when thecoalition starts working to-gether.

The open discussion period brought outmany ideas and concerns from thoseattending the meeting. A strong mar-keting agenda is needed to promotesolar. This marketing program alsoneeds a significant public educationcomponent. One example discussedwas installing PV systems in schoolsand using these systems to teach stu-dents about science and renewables.

Education is needed to retrain andchange the ‘mindset’ of those who canmake decisions involving solar such asarchitects and engineers. A broadbased education program is needed fordecision makers and large corpora-tions.

Some of the barriers facing Oregon arethe general complacency about energy.In addition, the abundance of low costhydro electricity distorts the compari-son costs with renewables. There is alarge segment in society that distruststechnology. In addition, solar’s imagesuffered in Oregon from some poorchoices in the 1980’s.

Financing for solar exists, but it needsto be readily accessible. Better market-ing of existing packages is needed.

This is just the beginning. Six commit-tees were formed to help develop asolar agenda for the coalition. Thecommittees are finance chaired by JonhKeto, marketing chaired by Doug Bo-leyn, training chaired by David Parker,

(Continued on page 11)

OREGON MSR COALITIONbarriers faced by the solar industry.

Angus Duncan, head of the newly cre-ated Bonneville Foundation, describedwork being done to organize the foun-dation and potential for the foundationto be involved with MSR projects.Given the proper programs, both Bon-neville and the Bonneville Foundationcould be sources for funds or financing.

The next panel covered current solaractivities in the state. David Parker,discussed the various projects initiatedby OSEIA including the introduction ofthe Oregon net metering bill, creationof the Oregon MSR Coalition, expand-ing OSEIA to include some of thelarger utilities, and initial planning totrain solar installers. Glen Friedmantalked about the annual solar confer-ence put together by SEA of O andparticipation in the national solar homein October. Christopher Dymond toldthe group about the Oregon Solar TaxCredit and discussed the Oregon Officeof Energy’s (OOE) interest in seeingthe solar industry succeed in Oregon.

The next panel consisted of Jeff Katoof OOE and John Graham of CARES.Jeff covered business and residentialtax credits in more detail and discussedthe possibilities of partnerships be-tween business, energy companies, andlocal government in making use of thesolar tax credit. John brought up finan-cial programs that worked for utilitiesand possible methods of encouraging

(Continued from page 1)

Steve Still and Curtis Framel discuss Oregon’sSolar potential.

Standing in the lunch line, Mike Nelson sharesWashington’s experience with Frank Vignola.

OREGON MSRCOALITION

codes and regulations chaired byRichard Perez, public educationchaired by Joe Savage, and utility pro-grams chaired by Don Spiek.

Overall, there is a great potential forsolar in Oregon if approached in thesolid manner. Now all that is needed isto determine how best to make thisapproach and to develop a concertedplan of action.

The next meeting of the Oregon MSRCoalition will be May 13, 1999 inEugene Oregon at EWEB. Initial com-mittee reports will be presented at thismeeting.

(Continued from page 10)The Oregon MSR Coalition has sub-mitted a proposal through the OregonOffice of Energy to the US DOE toidentify and start removing barriers tothe installation of 50,000 thousandsolar roofs in Oregon.

This proposal consists of five small,well defined projects designed toachieve near term MSR goals and tostart the coalition working together.These projects involve efforts ofmany people and are the seeds fromwhich the coalition will grow and ex-pand. The five integrated projectshave the following objectives:

1. Coordinate and expand the coali-tion and facilitate efforts by coali-tion members to identify and elim-inate barriers to the use of solarenergy technologies.

2. Conduct four utility workshops toeducate utility staff about net me-tering and “lay the groundwork”for the effective implementationof Oregon’s proposed net meter-ing legislation.

3. Develop a booth and other mar-keting tools that will be used toeducate and market a variety ofsolar energy technologies, avail-able financial incentives, solarhome tours and training opportu-nities.

4. Develop a training curriculum toeducate solar system installers anda strategy for establishing certifiedlicensed solar contractors.

5. Increase public awareness of MSRIthrough an expanded role for Ore-gon’s annual solar home tour.

These proposals were developed by theOregon MSR Coalition committeechairs. Christopher Dymond put theseideas together in a logical proposal.The announcement of successful pro-posals should occur about the time ofthe SOLTECH conference in KansasCity.

This is just the first of a series ofproposals that the Oregon MSR Coali-tion hopes to initiate. Once the coali-tion has developed a clear course ofaction the coalition will encouragefunding of proposals that support theseactions.

It is a lot easier to get funding if anagency sees how various projects fitinto the big picture. The coalition isdeveloping this picture. Your help isneeded to frame this picture. Contactthe coalition committee chair with yourconcerns and ideas. We can only makethis work if everyone contributes.

OREGON MSR COALITION PROPOSAL TO US DOE

PV WORKSHOPMark Cherniak and Doug Boleynwill teach a 4-hour seminar on Pho-tovoltaics for home and small busi-ness on Saturday, May 22, from 8am until noon. It will be held at theJohn Inskeep Environmental Learn-ing Center on the campus of theClackamas Community College.There will be a fee for the class, butamount has not been established at

this time. The class is presented andco-sponsored by the Solar Energy As-sociation of Oregon and the JohnInskeep Environmental Learning Cen-ter.

Contact Doug Boleyn at (503) 655-1617 or Mark Cherniak for more infor-mation.

WEBSITE DOCUMENTS

Oregon Solar Energy Industries Association399 E. 10th AvenueEugene, OR 97401-3202

Interested in some useful information?Try www.eren.doe.gov/millionroofs/onlinedocs.html.

This is the Million Solar Roof webpagethat contains the many interesting anduseful documents. The following is anabbreviated list of the papers availableat this web site.

Topics:

• Million Solar Roofs: Success StoriesSacramento, CA: PV PioneerSolarWise for SchoolsSun Power for SchoolsVolcanoes National ParkWestern Area Power Administration

• About Renewable EnergyLearning about Renewable Energy(for Kids)

• About Photovoltaics (PV)Basic Design Principles and Compo-nents

Solar Power TowerSolar Parabolic TroughSolar Dish Engine

• About FinancingThe Borrower’s Guide to Fi-nancing Solar Energy Systems:A Federal Overview

• Renewable Energy & UtilitiesPhotovoltaic Economics andMarkets: The Sacramento Mu-nicipal Utility District as a CaseStudyDistributed Generation andMicro-GridsUsing Distributed Resources toManage Risks Caused by De-mand UncertaintyThe Value of Grid-Support Pho-tovoltaics to Substation Trans-formers

Plus many more.

PV Fact SheetThin Films, Past, Present, FuturePhotovoltaics and Commercial Build-ingsOverview of PV TechnologiesResidential PVCharacterization of other utility tech-nologies

• About Solar HeatingFreeze Protection for Solar HeatingSystemsHeat Exchangers for Solar HeatingSystemsSolar Thermal Equipment Perfor-mance RatingsEnergy Efficient Water HeatingReliability of Active Solar DomesticHot Water SystemsSelecting a New Water HeaterSolar Water Heating Fact SheetActive Solar Radiant Floor HeatingSolar Ventilation Preheating

• Solar Thermal Electricity