• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

San Diego's 2nd Annual Solar Energy Week Generates Record Attendance for Solar Events

Posted on: Tuesday, 3 October 2006, 18:00 CDT

SAN DIEGO, Oct. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- The 2nd Annual Solar Energy Week, hosted by the nonprofit San Diego Regional Energy Office (SDREO), came to a close this weekend, setting record attendance with more than 4,000 attendees, almost doubling the number of participants of the inaugural Solar Energy Week in 2005. Following this summer's heat wave and the recent announcement of the California Solar Initiative, local interest in solar power continues to grow at an impressive rate. Solar Energy Week featured four great events to help San Diegans learn about how they can implement solar power in their homes, make cleaner energy choices and help alleviate the effects of global warming.

"San Diego is the ideal place for people to take advantage of the energy the sun provides, and the record turnout we had for Solar Energy Week's activities proves that people in this region are truly interested in making a change with solar power," said Irene M. Stillings, SDREO Executive Director. "As locals continue to learn about solar power and the rebate opportunities that exist, I think they will really embrace this opportunity to reduce their energy bills and help the environment by making changes in the way they power their homes."

On Sunday, September 24, Family Solar Energy Day kicked off Solar Energy Week, with more than 400 people in attendance -- double that of last year's event. Activities included solar powered car races, educational presentations and a sun drawing contest, in addition to solar oven baking, a solar heating display, plus free food and drinks. San Diego County Supervisor Pam Slater-Price and Commissioner John Geesman from the California Energy Commission also made brief presentations to an enthusiastic crowd.

The Commercial Solar Tour, a guided bus tour of three major San Diego companies showcasing various state-of-the-art solar installations, sold out three weeks prior to the tour, which took place on Tuesday, September 26. San Diego State University's Physics Building, QUALCOMM Inc.'s Building Q, and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 569 Headquarters and Union Hall were featured on the Tour, demonstrating how local companies and organizations are helping the environment and setting a positive example by utilizing solar power.

The Solar Energy Conference, held at the University of San Diego on Wednesday, September 27, brought in more than 500 attendees, making it the largest such event ever held in Southern California and almost doubled the number of people from last year's conference. The conference proved to be a valuable event for all attendees, featuring an impressive range of local and national solar and government experts discussing a variety of topics from the basics of how solar energy works to high-level discussions on renewable energy credits and solar legislation. Twenty vendors also showed off the latest technologies both indoors and outdoors under the sun.

The grand finale of Solar Energy Week was the 7th Annual Solar Homes Tour, which took place on Saturday, September 30. More than 30 homes participated in the tour, offering San Diego County residents a rare glimpse into homes with solar electric installations and solar pool and water heating systems. SDREO estimates that more than 2,500 people attended this year's tour to learn how solar can save them money on their home energy bills, improve the environment, mitigate climate change and reduce fossil fuel dependence.

QUALCOMM, Inc., SDG&E, the County of San Diego and Supervisor Slater-Price all pledged substantial support for Solar Energy Week, helping make it such a success. Major sponsorship also came from BP Solar, Kyocera Solar and Independent Energy Solutions. Additional sponsors included Sanyo, Unisolar, Powerlight, Renewable Technologies Inc., and the San Diego Electrical Training Center (IBEW).

The San Diego Regional Energy Office (SDREO) is an independent, nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation that helps residents, businesses and public agencies save energy, reduce grid demand and generate their own power through a variety of rebate, technical assistance and education programs. SDREO also provides the community with objective information, research, analysis and long-term planning on energy issues and technologies. For more information, visit our website at http://www.sdenergy.org/ or call us toll free at 1-866-SDENERGY.

San Diego Regional Energy Office

CONTACT: Megan Novak, +1-858-792-2939, megan@domino-pr.com, for SanDiego Regional Energy Office; or Tom Geldner of San Diego Regional EnergyOffice, +1-858-244-1184, tom.geldner@sdenergy.org

Web site: http://www.sdenergy.org/

Source: PRNewswire

More News in this Category