Monterey County ups its investments in renewable energy

By next summer, the County of Monterey will have expanded its investments in renewable energy, providing electric vehicle charging stations for up to 56 vehicles and nearly 3.7 megawatts of solar power, with solar canopies, ground mounts and roof mounts in three locations, according to an update in this week’s county news briefing.

“Transportation is the County’s number one source of greenhouse gas emissions, so being able to offer electric vehicle charging in Salinas is something that is really going to help,” said Sustainability Manager for Monterey County Cora Panturad.

Natividad Medical Center is the biggest site of the project, with 2.7 megawatts of solar canopies and ground-mount solar panels across the campus as well as 12 dual-port EV charging stations.

The Monterey County Government Center will receive around 544 kilowatts of solar canopies and roof-mounted panels and 10 dual-port EV charging stations.

The Information Technology Department Building will receive 450 kilowatts of solar canopies and roof mounts in addition to six dual-port EV charging stations.

While the charging stations at the Information Technology Department Building will be mostly for County fleet vehicles, at Natividad and the County Government Center, many will be available for public use. The Government Center will also have four ports of EV “fast chargers.”

“So the idea is that someone could come in, bring their electric vehicle, do their business at the Government Center or downtown Salinas and fully charge their car in about an hour,” said Panturad.

Construction is under way at all three sites and going to schedule – even ahead of schedule in the case of Natividad – said Shira Zingman-Daniels, project director with Opterra Energy Services, the county’s partner in the project.

“The project…advances the county’s clean transportation and renewable energy goals,” Zingman-Daniels said during the briefing. “This project delivers meaningful cost savings and it represents a wise investment of public funds…that will benefit residents for decades.”

As the project has progressed, Zingman-Daniels said Opterra has strived to involve the community.

“We really have been trying to emphasize a community benefit in the impact of our project,” Zingman-Daniels said.

So far, this has included the sponsorship of an intern from Hartnell College, as well as tours or the project sites by Rancho Cielo students and participating in vendor fairs with Monterey County Business Council.

Chris Hamilton is a California Local News fellow covering Salinas and the Salinas Valley for The Herald.