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Butterworth Dump err Landfill


GRDadof3

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Buried deep in the State of the City address this last weekend, Sustainability Director Haris Alibasic announced the city is seriously studying a 38 acre solar panel field installation at the old Butterworth landfill (about 20% of the site), enough to power 1100 homes. As we've discussed here for many years, the limitations for any kind of development on this site are pretty great, as it has a clay cap over it.

 

That would be kinda cool to see from 196.

 

 

http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2014/01/3_themes_from_grand_rapids_may.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+grpress+%28The+Grand+Rapids+Press+Latest+News+{sodEmoji.|}+MLive.com%29

 

 

(Similar sized solar farm)

4032520515.jpg

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The wind turbines used in the large scale wind farms create an ultrasonic sine wave undetectable to the human ear.  However, this wave stimulates the hippocampus in the brain in a way that makes the general populace more docile and receptive to commands from the New World Order.  At least that's what I read on the interwebs somewhere.

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What's kind of interesting about the Butterworth dump is that bordering it to the east used to be an old Consumers Power coal burning electric generating plant that operated till sometime in the earlier 1970s.  It's gone now but the high voltage power lines are still there.  It seems to me this would make it easier to tie the solar panels to the power grid.

 

Power lines:

 

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=840+Wealthy+sw+grand+rapids+mi&layer=c&z=17&iwloc=A&sll=42.956068,-85.689701&cbp=13,238.3,0,0,0&cbll=42.956080,-85.689675&hl=en&ved=0CAsQ2wU&sa=X&ei=nVHVUt-kBcT7wQHEyIHgBA

 

Old long gone power plant:

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8338/8229018256_612dc24a27_m.jpg 

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What's kind of interesting about the Butterworth dump is that bordering it to the east used to be an old Consumers Power coal burning electric generating plant that operated till sometime in the earlier 1970s.  It's gone now but the high voltage power lines are still there.  It seems to me this would make it easier to tie the solar panels to the power grid.

 

Power lines:

 

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=840+Wealthy+sw+grand+rapids+mi&layer=c&z=17&iwloc=A&sll=42.956068,-85.689701&cbp=13,238.3,0,0,0&cbll=42.956080,-85.689675&hl=en&ved=0CAsQ2wU&sa=X&ei=nVHVUt-kBcT7wQHEyIHgBA

 

Old long gone power plant:

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8338/8229018256_612dc24a27_m.jpg 

 

Makes sense.

The wind turbines used in the large scale wind farms create an ultrasonic sine wave undetectable to the human ear.  However, this wave stimulates the hippocampus in the brain in a way that makes the general populace more docile and receptive to commands from the New World Order.  At least that's what I read on the interwebs somewhere.

 

Makes sense.

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I think this is a great idea, I thought this has been floating around for a couple of years now? or maybe only in my mind? anyways what a great use of space and being highly visible, it makes the city look even more progressive and independent. I thought just one windmill for good PR would be nice of course not if it help facilitate new world order.....I was in Worcester MA a few years back and there is one large windmill near the city and thought that was cool. 

 

On a side note people are always knocking that industry but in the last 5 years or so the efficiency of panels has increased while the cost of production has fallen about 75% and Germany is the highest solar producer per capita and nowhere in that country is the sun more intense than in MI. And I heard that NJ leads the US in per capita both not exactly sunny places like MI. The maintenance is minimal, pay off should probably be 10 years or so and last about 40. 

 

IMO there is a lot of potential of making the site a much better connection between millennium park and downtown. I know there are paved trails around the parameter but it would be cool to see better use of the riverfront, maybe some tree clearing, piers, public boat launch, pedestrian bridge or tunnel crossing 196, even some art? I think with all the GVSU expansion downtown there could potentially be a nice river walk/trails along the entire west bank of the river

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I think this is a great idea, I thought this has been floating around for a couple of years now? or maybe only in my mind? anyways what a great use of space and being highly visible, it makes the city look even more progressive and independent. I thought just one windmill for good PR would be nice of course not if it help facilitate new world order.....I was in Worcester MA a few years back and there is one large windmill near the city and thought that was cool. 

 

On a side note people are always knocking that industry but in the last 5 years or so the efficiency of panels has increased while the cost of production has fallen about 75% and Germany is the highest solar producer per capita and nowhere in that country is the sun more intense than in MI. And I heard that NJ leads the US in per capita both not exactly sunny places like MI. The maintenance is minimal, pay off should probably be 10 years or so and last about 40. 

 

IMO there is a lot of potential of making the site a much better connection between millennium park and downtown. I know there are paved trails around the parameter but it would be cool to see better use of the riverfront, maybe some tree clearing, piers, public boat launch, pedestrian bridge or tunnel crossing 196, even some art? I think with all the GVSU expansion downtown there could potentially be a nice river walk/trails along the entire west bank of the river

 

I think a new boat launch is part of the federal grant they received.

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  • 1 year later...

I always hoped the outdoor concert venue that was proposed many years ago for that site would go through.

 

I believe the concert venue was proposed for Millennium Park.  

 

Was the solar field part of the master plan for this site?  I know it also called for soccer fileds, a boat launch, and maybe community green houses?

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I believe the concert venue was proposed for Millennium Park.  

 

Was the solar field part of the master plan for this site?  I know it also called for soccer fileds, a boat launch, and maybe community green houses?

 

I believe the concert venue was proposed for Millennium Park.  

 

Was the solar field part of the master plan for this site?  I know it also called for soccer fileds, a boat launch, and maybe community green houses?

 

 

Solar field was proposed last year by Haris Alibasic at the city.

 

If you look at the EPA docs (feasibility study), it looks like they're preserving the recreational areas.

 

15760444443_2d3e1fbf9c_b.jpg

 

 

 

 

They use this solar field in Massachusetts on an old landfill as an example:

 

16379555382_9d0d7897e4_o.jpg

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Solar field was proposed last year by Haris Alibasic at the city.

 

If you look at the EPA docs (feasibility study), it looks like they're preserving the recreational areas.

 

15760444443_2d3e1fbf9c_b.jpg

 

 

 

 

They use this solar field in Massachusetts on an old landfill as an example:

 

16379555382_9d0d7897e4_o.jpg

 

It appears that the city has reduced the amount of park space from the original master plan.  While I'm not against a solar field, does it still make sense considering Grand Rapids' high number of cloudy days?  Or is that a misconception with regard to gathering solar energy?

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It appears that the city has reduced the amount of park space from the original master plan.  While I'm not against a solar field, does it still make sense considering Grand Rapids' high number of cloudy days?  Or is that a misconception with regard to gathering solar energy?

 

If you go to page 6 it says they've identified 54 acres for recreational use. I don't know about the science, but it can't be that much different than Western Massachusetts?

 

http://www.epa.gov/superfund/programs/recycle/pdf/butterworth-solar-reuseassessment-2013.pdf

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Did you read the RFP? Oh of course not.

 

Yeah, I was pretty impressed with the detail in the EPA document.  The Skeo Solutions consulting group probably has a bit of a "cut and paste" format for these reports, but there were a lot of site specific details as well, and it's very readable.

 

The northern California-based company I work for started building combiner and re-combiner boxes in Walker last May.  They primarily chose to locate in GR due to the low cost of space, great manufacturing resources and talent, and to be a lot closer to some of our major suppliers and improve transit time to our east coast customers. I passed this along to our sales dept and their going to see if any of our customers are interested in bidding on it. Would be nice to "buy local".  

 

http://www.epa.gov/superfund/programs/recycle/pdf/butterworth-solar-reuseassessment-2013.pdf

Page 8 has a pretty good summary of the components involved in constructing an industrial scale array.  I imagine that being close to the power substation might reduce costs of tying into the grid, too, but I don't know enough about how that part works to say.

Edited by fotoman311
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No, I'm studying an alternative which which harnesses hamsters to flywheels ... of course. 

 

Point being, they are soliciting developers to build the solar array, with a contract that the city would purchase power from the developer/energy company. If the numbers work, then the numbers work. If they don't, it won't happen. I'm sure there's probably tax credits and grants available for solar power development, just like there are for natural gas and petroleum. I have NOT heard of any tax credits for hamster power yet though. 

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Solar panels installed in one of the cloudiest areas in the country (especially Nov - March)?  Or has there been a quantum leap in technology that would make it even remotely self-sufficient?

 

US%2520Solar%2520Regions%5B1%5D.gif

 

Germany = most solar production, while solar power potential is a lot like Alaska and the rain forests of Washington. 3x the production of US and about a third the population, cloudiness is a small factor, nuff said 

 

http://pureenergies.com/us/blog/top-10-countries-using-solar-power/

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In Grand Rapids, each kilowatt of solar pv capacity produces an average 1245 kilowatt-hours annually (compared to 1700 kwh in Phoenix or 900 kwh in Berlin, Germany). The solar panels for each kilowatt of capacity takes about 75-100 sq ft of space depending on efficiency and layout. 

 

By 2022, energy storage will likely have similar rate of return as solar pv today, so much of the variability issues will be worked out (although Michigan already has one of the largest energy storage facilities in the U.S. in Ludington). If solar is coupled with effective utility demand-side programs then variable production rates are dramatically mitigated. 

Edited by Jippy
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In Grand Rapids, each kilowatt of solar pv capacity produces an average 1245 kilowatt-hours annually (compared to 1700 kwh in Phoenix or 900 kwh in Berlin, Germany). The solar panels for each kilowatt of capacity takes about 75-100 sq ft of space depending on efficiency and layout. 

 

By 2022, energy storage will likely have similar rate of return as solar pv today, so much of the variability issues will be worked out (although Michigan already has one of the largest energy storage facilities in the U.S. in Ludington). If solar is coupled with effective utility demand-side programs then variable production rates are dramatically mitigated. 

 

Also, I believe I've seen some comparisons of demand and solar production, and during the day when demand increases, is the same time that solar production takes place. (and wind, for that matter, though you'll obviously get some wind production at night when the conditions are right)

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