emPOWER Over town Resilient Community Solar Catherine McCandless | MUP ‘19 Naomi Woods | MDes ‘19
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CONTENTS 01 |
Research and Analysis.....................................2
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Community Solar...........................................10
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Microgrids....................................................12
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Implementation............................................14
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Conclusion and References............................20
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Top: View of the highway that cuts through Overtown, Miami. Source: Transit Miami
01 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY As a part of the Multiple Miami’s Project-Based Course through the Harvard University Graduate School of Design (GSD), this project proposes a comprehensive solution to some of Overtown, Miami’s most pressing challenges relating to the impacts of climate change. This solution involves the construction of a community solar array in or near Overtown that would allow for low-income residents to subscribe to the system and receive energy credits on their monthly utility bill. The community solar array would be connected to a microgrid to allow for resilient back-up electricity, which is crucial given that intense hurricanes will become more frequent as a result of climate change and low-income communities are often the last to have their power restored.
Overtown, Miami Population: 10,004 Land Area: 1.317 mi2 Median Income: $18,000 Non-White Population: 92%
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A community solar installation that is connected to a microgrid would address all five of our project goals, which are to: 1) address rising temperatures in Miami and the consequent increase in electricity costs in Overtown; 2) provide access to clean energy for Overtown residents; 3) increase resilience of energy infrastructure for the general welfare of Overtown residents; 4) promote community stability in Overtown through affordable and reliable energy; and 5) empower Overtown residents through workforce development opportunities in solar. We hope that this report presents compelling evidence for the necessity of this project and the vast benefits that it could achieve for Overtown.
CLIMATE CHANGE IN MIAMI Climate change is a complex, global issue that affects every facet of our lives, including the quality of our air and water, infrastructure, weather patterns, public health and safety, biodiversity, food production, and rising seas. Miami will experience some of the most significant impacts of all United States cities. According to experts from the Southeast Florida Regional Compact on Climate Change, Miami will see three to five feet of sea level rise by the end of the century and extreme weather events, particularly hurricanes, will become more frequent and more intense.1
“Disaster preparedness is a huge issue. We as a city are organizing groups with emergency managers. Solar energy would be important.” JANE GILBERT
Miami Chief Resilience Officer 100 Resilient Cities Initiative
In another report by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), findings revealed that by 2070, Miami streets will flood every single day.2 In response to these studies, Miami residents voted in favor of a $400 million “Miami Forever” bond in 2017, $192 million of which is specifically allocated for measures to protect the city from flooding. Everyone, regardless of socioeconomic status or geography, will experience the impacts of climate change in one way or another. However, low-income, minority, and immigrant populations will be disproportionately affected. Low-income populations already lack stability given the nationwide shortage of affordable housing and they have the least amount of resources to escape or mitigate the impacts of climate change. Additionally, in Miami, developers are increasingly buying land in lower-income neighborhoods that are located further inland from the coast and are at higher elevations. This practice, called climate gentrification, perpetuates racial and social inequities through the displacement of low-income residents.3 After investigating the devastating impacts of climate change on Miami, our research began by exploring how sea level rise and hurricanes would disrupt Overtown and its community. Over the course of the semester, we interviewed practitioners working on climate change issues in Miami-Dade County – and in Miami more broadly – to hear what they thought the biggest threats would be to Overtown residents. We spoke to Jane Gilbert, Chief Resiliency Officer for the City of Miami through the 100 Resilient Cities initiative, Yoca Arditi-Rocha, Executive Director of Climate Leadership Engagement Opportunities at The CLEO Institute, and Zelalem Adefris, Director of Resilience at Catalyst Miami. All three of these practitioners expressed that the biggest threat to Overtown is that the effects of climate change will exacerbate the existing issues of inequality, discrimination, and gentrification that have persisted in the neighborhood for far too long. Moreover, while the need for flood adaptation is certainly important, the most urgent impacts of climate change in Overtown are increasing temperatures, a lack of disaster preparedness, and inaccessibility to clean energy resources. Consequently, the focus of our research changed direction to further investigate these threats. 1 2 3
“Miami is ground zero for climate gentrification, and ground zero for sea level rise.” YOCA ARDITI-ROCHA Executive Director The CLEO Institute
“Most of Miami is a community of color. In Miami, [climate change] is more of an economic issue.” ZELALEM ADEFRIS Director of Resilience Catalyst Miami
CLIMATE URGENCY IN OVERTOWN
INCREASING TEMPERATURES
LACK OF DISASTER PREPAREDNESS
Southeast Florida Regional Compact on Climate Change. 2015. “Unified Sea Level Rise Projection.” National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). 2018. “Patterns and Projections of High Tide Flooding Along the U.S. Coastline Using a Common Impact Threshold.” Keenan, J., Hill, T., and Gumber, A. 2018. “Climate Gentrification: From Theory to Empiricism in Miami- Dade County, Florida.”
INACCESSIBILITY TO CLEAN ENERGY
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01 Average Number of Days per Year Above 90 o Fahrenheit
RISING TEMPERATURES
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Days Above 90°F
In 2017, Miami experienced 38 consecutive days over 90 degrees Fahrenheit. According to Climate Central, by 2050, Miami will see an average of approximately 130 days per year that are above 90 degrees.4 Including the unparalleled Miami humidity, the heat index will make it feel like it is over 105 degrees.
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Medical experts report that exposure to extreme heat can cause a variety of health impacts, particularly asthma, heart disease, lung disorders, and even mental illnesses. Certain populations, such as the homeless, the elderly, and children, are more vulnerable than others to the impacts of rising temperatures. In Overtown, there is an entire community of homeless individuals living in tents under the interchange that crisscrosses atop the neighborhood. Additionally, Overtown lacks sufficient tree canopy, and consequently residents who use public transportation will be exposed to the extreme heat without any shade while they wait for their bus or train. Increasing temperatures will result in increasing use of fans or air conditioning for those who have access to or can afford these cooling systems. In an interview with Dr. Cheryl Holder, President of the Florida State Medical Association, an elderly patient reported that she was sweltering in her home, but she did not want to leave her window open because she was concerned about the crime in her neighborhood.5 This forced her to rely on her air conditioner and consequently her electricity bill was unaffordable. Florida residents are already incredibly dependent on having access to cooling systems. More than a quarter (27%) of the energy consumed in Florida homes is for air conditioning, which is more than four times the national average. The average electric bill for a Miami household is $123/month, but during the summer, and especially during hurricane season, most household utility bills are much higher.6 With rising temperatures, electricity rates and the frequency of brownouts, which are drop-outs in an electrical power supply system due to overwhelming demand, will likely increase.
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DAYS BY 2050
80 60 40 20 0 1970
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Kahn, Brian. 2015. “Surge in ‘Danger Days’ Just Around the Corner.” Harris, Alex. 2018. “How Can We Address the Effects of Climate Change on Communities of Color?” Electricity Local. 2018. Electricity Statistics - Miami, FL.
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2050
Average Residential Electricity Consumption for Air Conditioning
6% United States
27% Florida
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Miami Skyline. Source: Huff Post
The average household income in Overtown is approximately $18,000. If an average Overtown household spends $123/ month on their electricity bill, they would pay $1,476/year, which is 8.2% of their income, on electricity. If the average electricity bill were to increase to say, $175/month, due to the rising temperatures, then Overtown residents would pay $2,100/year, which is 11.6% of their annual income. Today, 85% of Overtown residents are renters and many are considered cost-burdened. According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), a cost-burdened individual is defined as someone “who pays more than 30% of their income for housing” and “may have difficulty affording necessities such as food, clothing, transportation and medical care.”7 If an average Overtown resident pays 30% of their income on rent and 11.6% on their electricity bill, then they are already spending 41.6% of their income on rent and electricity alone, leaving only 58.4% of their income, or $10,512, for a year’s worth of food, health care, transportation, and the rest of their basic needs. This is a conservative estimate, as many cost-burdened renters pay more than 50% of their annual income for housing. Applying the same calculation, if an average Overtown resident were to pay 50% of their income on rent and 11.6% on their electricity bill, they would be left with $6,912 for the year, or $576/month, for all other expenses.
THE AVERAGE ELECTRICITY BILL FOR MIAMI RESIDENTS IS $123/MONTH. FOR AN AVERAGE HOUSEHOLD IN OVERTOWN THAT EARNS $18,000 PER YEAR, THIS IS 8.2% OF THEIR ANNUAL INCOME. THIS AMOUNT WILL INCREASE AS TEMPERATURES CONTINUE TO RISE.
Housing affordability is already a huge threat to Overtown residents that will only be worsened as heat-induced utility bills increase. No one should have to compromise between paying rent, buying groceries, and maintaining a livable temperature in their home.
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U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. n.d. “Community Planning and Development - Affordable Housing.”
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LACK OF DISASTER PREPAREDNESS Another major issue for Overtown residents is the loss of power during extreme weather events, such as hurricanes. While the frequency of hurricanes in the future may not increase, the intensity of the storms – in terms of wind speed, precipitation and subsequent storm surge – is likely to increase as a result of climate change. This means that hurricanes will more often be Category 5, as was seen during Hurricane Irma in 2017.8
As such, this investment aimed to restore power faster but not reduce power outages. FPL is a shareholder-owned energy monopoly in south Florida and has previously passed the cost of repairs from hurricanes on to consumers. In fact, Miami residents are still paying off the cost of Hurricane Matthew repairs from 2016, which cost approximately $318 million. FPL has not invested in back-up power or alternative grid systems, which means that customers are guaranteed to lose power during storms, and it is a matter of how long they will be without power. Over ninety percent of Miami residents lost power during Irma. This guaranteed loss of power, coupled with the surcharge for repairs that costs customers even more than the existing utility costs, stands to be improved.
In the past, because of Overtown’s relatively higher elevation at 8 feet or more above sea level, flooding has not been as dramatic as in other parts of Miami. In the future, Overtown, along with several other central Miami neighborhoods, may escape much of the damage related to sea level rise – but this does not mean they won’t be drastically affected by the impacts of storms and climate change.9
In Overtown, many residents depend on air conditioners to cool their homes during hurricane season. If the power goes out, residents who cannot relocate for mobility or safety reasons are put at risk. Their apartments overheat, food spoils, and phone batteries and other essentials will not be recharged until power comes back on. Overtown residents are also not able to pay extra on their utility bills for repairs to the grid of a private monopoly energy provider, which is an estimated $250 per customer per year. Overtown needs a resilient electricity grid to reduce these risks and vulnerabilities during the severe storms that will be visiting Miami in the future.
In most hurricanes, residents of Miami lose power. During Hurricane Wilma in 2005, some south Florida residents went without power for up to 18 days.10 After Hurricane Irma in 2017, over 35,000 Miami-Dade residents were without power a week, including many in Overtown, Allapattah and Little Haiti. The electricity utility for south Florida, Florida Power and Light (FPL), attributes the prolonged loss of power to downed powerlines and infrastructure damage. Over the past several years, FPL spent $3 billion to reinforce and ”harden“ the electrical system in south Florida against storms.11 This has included installing a monitoring system which gives repair teams a faster indication of where power lines are down.
MAJOR THREATS DURING AND AFTER DISASTERS
EXTENDED POWER LOSS
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After Hurricane Irma in 2017, 35,000 MiamiDade residents went without power for a week.
FAILED COOLING SYSTEMS
Union of Concerned Scientists. 2017. “Hurricanes and Climate Change.” For more detail on how sea level rise will affect the City of Miami, check out Eyes on the Rise. 10 WSVN. 2015. “Remembering Wilma: 10 Years since Storm Left Florida Powerless.”
If cooling systems fail, those who do not have the resources to evacuate are left in extreme heat.
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EXTREME HEAT EXPOSURE
Exposure to extreme heat is the leading cause of death after a natural disaster.
Nehemas, Nicholas. 2017. Neal, David J. 2018. “That Hurricane Irma Cleanup Surcharge Coming to Your FPL Bill? It’s Been Turned off.”
“EACH TIME THERE IS A
DISASTER, OUR BLACK, BROWN, AND IMMIGRANT COMMUNITIES SEEM TO BE THE LAST TO RECEIVE HELP... IT’S LIKE THESE COMMUNITIES DON’T MATTER.
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ANDREA MERCADO EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR THE NEW FLORIDA MAJORITY
Photo taken during Hurricane Irma, 2017. Source unknown.
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INACCESSIBILITY TO CLEAN ENERGY Up until recently, Florida households were unable to lease solar systems due to restrictions on electricity sales from third-party providers. However, in April of this year, the Florida Public Service Commission voted unanimously to allow a solar company called Sunrun Solar to lease residential solar systems.13 While this was a huge victory for clean energy in Florida, an ongoing issue in the solar energy market is that it is often exclusive. Residential solar installations cost thousands of dollars, which means that most low-income residents are typically unable to participate in the benefits of solar. According to the Solar Power Authority, a solar panel’s generating capacity is 10 watts/ square foot. For every kilowatt (kW) generated, a home needs approximately 100 SF of solar panels.14 If the sun shone 24 hours per day, 100 SF of panels would generate enough energy to power the average home. Of course, the sun does not shine for entire days, and the reality is that the average home would require 400 to 800 SF (4kW to 8kW) of solar panels to power the entire home, depending on the location.
CLEAN ENERGY IS NOT ACCESSIBLE TO EVERYONE, ESPECIALLY SOLAR... BUT WHY? IT COSTS $18,370 TO INSTALL A 5KW SYSTEM, RENTERS CANNOT INSTALL, AND MANY HOMES CANNOT PHYSICALLY SUPPORT PANELS.
As of 2018, the cost of installing solar in Miami is $3.67 per watt, and therefore a 5kW system would cost approximately $18,370 to install.15 With the existing 30% tax credit on solar offered in Miami, the system would cost $12,859. While the cost of solar installation has decreased over the last decade, the cost of installation is still prohibitive to low-income residents.
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State of Florida Public Service Commission. 2018. “PSC Declaratory Statement Allows Residential Solar Equipment Leases.” Kinnear, John. 2018. “How Much Does It Cost to Install Solar on an Average U.S. House?” Solar Power Authority. Solar Reviews. 2018. “How Much Do Solar Panels Cost in Miami in 2018?”
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OVERTOWN RESIDENTS BEAR A GREAT ENVIRONMENTAL BURDEN i
rc ond ses a ition e ing use incr
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Coupled with Overtown’s close proximity to multiple highways, Overtown residents have been unable to tap into the clean energy market despite being at the front lines of environmental pollution and the negative impacts from traditional energy sources. A conundrum is that, as more carbon is emitted into the atmosphere from fossil fuel production and temperatures rise, residents will use their carbon-based energy systems to cool their homes at a higher rate, thus emitting more carbon into the atmosphere and exacerbating climate change, temperature increases, and air pollution in the area.
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As mentioned earlier, 85% of Overtown residents are renters, which means that, even if they did have the financial means, they could not install solar panels because they do not own their roof. Furthermore, much of the housing stock in Overtown is crumbling and likely could not physically support a rooftop solar installation.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR OVERTOWN?
PRIMARY PROJECT GOALS Our research and analysis of the impacts of climate change on Overtown led us to seek solutions that could pursue five key goals:
1 2 3 4 5
Address rising temperatures in Miami and the consequent increase in electricity costs in Overtown
Provide access to clean energy for Overtown residents
Increase resilience of energy infrastructure for the general welfare of Overtown residents
Promote community stability in Overtown through affordable and reliable energy
Empower Overtown residents through workforce development in solar
To achieve these goals, we propose the installation of a community solar installation that is connected to a microgrid.
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Graphic Source: SunShare
A community solar project is constructed
The generated energy is distributed onto a utility company’s grid, supplementing their power supply with clean energy
The utility company continues to supply energy to homes
Community solar subscribers receive their monthly energy bill from their utility provider
Subcribers receive either a monetary or an energy credit on their utility bill for their portion of the clean energy produced
02 WHAT IS COMMUNITY SOLAR? Community solar refers to a local solar installation that is shared by multiple community subscribers who receive credit on their electricity bills – either monetary or energy-use credit – for their share of the energy produced. This model for solar is rapidly being adopted nationwide because it expands access to solar for all, particularly including low-to-moderate income customers who are most impacted by a lack of access.16 There are 42 states with at least one community solar project online, with 1,294 cumulative megawatts installed through the second fiscal quarter (Q2) of 2018. Community solar installations can be located on public or jointly-owned property and can be referred to as both community-owned or thirdparty owned. The cost of solar energy varies widely across the U.S., but as of May 2018, the cost of solar is now cheaper than coal.17 While fossil fuels like coal costs approximately $102/megawatt hour,
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solar costs $50/megawatt hour, which makes solar the cheapest form of electricity generation other than wind. Therefore, community solar subscribers could save hundreds to thousands of dollars on their annual utility bills. With the calculation from the earlier section on increasing temperatures, an average Overtown resident who makes $18,000/year and spends $175/month on electricity bills could save around $1,050/year, or 5.8% of their annual income, by subscribing a community solar installation. Community solar installations help address the physical and financial barriers of going solar and provide residents with the ability to choose local, clean electricity that can support economic development, environmental resiliency, and healthier communities.
Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). 2018. “Community Solar.” Berke, Jeremy. 2018. “One Simple Chart Shows Why an Energy Revolution Is Coming - and Who Is Likely to Come out on Top.”
CASE STUDY
Coyote Ridge Solar Farm - Fort Collins, CO California and Colorado are two states that have been particularly successful in utilizing community solar to benefit low-income customers. A great case study is the Coyote Ridge Solar Farm in Fort Collins, Colorado, which has been described as the largest community solar array in the country and is dedicated to low-income households.18 The project was completed in September 2017 and eligibility is determined by income guidelines, which vary based on family size and county of residence, like how affordable housing criteria is measured. The project has about 400 low-income subscribers who save approximately 30-50% of their typical electricity bill through the project with no additional upfront or monthly costs.
“THE MILESTONE COMMUNITY SOLAR FARM IS PAVING THE WAY FOR OTHER AFFORDABLE AND SCALABLE PROJECTS OF ITS KIND TO COME TO FRUITION ACROSS COLORADO AND HOPEFULLY ACROSS THE US.”
One of the project leads, GRID Alternatives, is a nonprofit that partners with utility companies, government agencies, and other entities to bring solar energy to low-income households and communities, very much like model of Habitat for Humanity. The organization has worked with Sunrun Solar on other projects in California, and now that Florida is allowing leasing of solar panels from Sunrun, we see the potential for collaboration on a community solar installation in Overtown.
Above: Subscribers to the Coyote Ridge Solar Farm in Fort Collins, CO. Source: Clean Energy Collective
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Kahn, Michael W. 2018. “Bringing the Power of Community Solar to the Entire Community.” America’s Electric Cooperatives.
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03 WHAT IS A MICROGRID? In addition to providing access to clean energy that reduces the financial impact of utilities on low-income residents, Overtown also needs a stable and resilient power supply for when Miami is hit by hurricanes. Several large coastal cities in the U.S. are faced with the same issues, and microgrids are an increasingly plausible solution. A microgrid is most simply described as smaller power grids that serve a defined area, like a hospital, military base, or university campus. They have their own source of power generation in the form of a diesel generator, batteries, thermal, solar or wind so that they can disconnect from the larger main grid at any time and still provide power to those homes and institutions that are connected to it. Microgrids vary in size from one building to small municipalities and are designed based on site-specific parameters. According to the US Department of Energy, when a microgrid is inserted into the system, it acts as part of the overall grid but can disconnect to operate autonomously and control the flow
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Aerial photo of New Orleans by NOAA.
of electricity, powered by alternative sources of energy. This helps mitigate grid disturbances and keep systems operating even if the main grid goes down. Consequently, microgrids can cost-effectively integrate energy storage and manage high demand.19 The microgrid is composed of the energy inputs, such as solar panels, and the grid distribution and storage, such as the batteries. The microgrid is modular and batteries and panels can be added according to specifications of the project. For instance, in Sterling, MA, a 2-megawatt (MW) lithium ion battery is connected to a 3 MW solar array, which can provide four hours of continuous power to the town. The system cost $2.7 million to construct, and the municipality estimates it will pay for itself in two years through cost savings on energy that the municipality does not have to buy from the state energy grid during peak demand periods. For instance, the town saves $17,000 in one hour during peak demand in December 2016 by discharging the battery rather than buying energy.20
CASE STUDY I
CASE STUDY II
While still in the feasibility stages, New Orleans provides an excellent example for the case of Overtown. The US Department of Energy’s Grid Modernization Lab Consortium has worked with the City of New Orleans to assess options for electrical grid modernization, which was initiated after Katrina.
The Town Center Microgrid project in New Jersey will use the power-generating capacities of a microgrid on a daily basis in addition to providing back-up power resilience during an emergency. New Jersey has a 100% clean energy goal for 2050, which has been supported by state legislation for increased energy efficiency, wind and solar energy generation, and provisions for energy storage capacity through microgrids. This would integrate the power generated by the microgrids in the overall energy stabilization efforts of the wider electricity grid for the state. This is being complemented by considerations of energy efficiency in zoning and construction practices.
Resilience Nodes - New Orleans, LA
Town Center Microgrids - Hoboken, NJ
The outcome of this process was a system of resilience “nodes” throughout the city, each powered by a microgrid, which would provide clusters of services necessary for the public in the aftermath of a storm, connected to a highly resilient electrical supply.21 During the time that the microgrid system is not needed for emergencies, each node would continue to generate power that could be used by these clustered services and neighboring residents.
Though still in the early stages, this project will enable New Jersey to diversify its power generation sources widely while also enabling the state to test resilience in its development of microgrids. The state-supported program is open to towns considered vulnerable to storms. Like New Orleans, the Hoboken approach does not rely solely on solar. It uses a mix of clean energy sources, including solar, that can be used as appropriate.
Considerations were made for the equitable distribution of the nodes within the city, targeting the areas where the elevation is higher, where residents would likely not be able to evacuate, and where they would not otherwise have access to backup power generation. The nodes would be located by zone in the city in order to ensure equitable distribution to all areas. The project was financed as part of $141 million in unused Hurricane Sandy funds from HUD and a $1 million assessment grant from the Department of Energy. The costs of the specific nodes, such as the Gentilly Resilience District in central New Orleans, are still being assessed.22
Hoboken is one such town that qualified for the innovation grant. The city was inundated by Sandy and worked with the Department of Energy and Sandia National Laboratory, who is also behind the New Orleans assessment and the design of microgrids in many U.S. military bases, to develop a microgrid plan that links public and private services. The Hoboken project aims to link 50 key buildings throughout the town onto the same microgrid, for an estimated cost of $50 million.
Overtown would be an ideal candidate for this program and the City of Miami could consider a similar urban resilience planning process to determine and/or consolidate nodes in the City.
Utility Grid
Graphic Source: LG CNS
Microgrid
Commercial & Industrial 19 20 21 22
Residential
Generator
Renewable Energy
Lantero, Allison. 2014. “How Microgrids Work.” Olinsky-Paul, Todd. 2017. “How One Small U.S. Town Will Save Millions with a Microgrid.” Renewable Energy World. Powers, Alexis. 2016. “How Renewables Will Help New Orleans Keep the Lights On.” Office of Energy Efficiency & Renwable Energy. City of New Orleans. 2018. “Gentilly Resilience District Fact Sheet.”
Batteries & Storage
Electric Vehicles
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04 IMPLEMENTING A COMMUNITY SOLAR MICROGRID IN OVERTOWN A community solar installation that is connected to a microgrid is something that many communities around the world would benefit from, especially as the impacts of climate change become more difficult to ignore or avoid. While the project is not something that would be unique to Overtown, Overtown is unique in its need for the project. Overtown residents have been impacted by poor air quality from being near multiple highways. Additionally, they have been unable to tap into the renewable energy market, which subjects the community to the pollution from traditional energy sources that rely on fossil fuels, such as coal and natural gas. With climate gentrification taking place, property values in Overtown are already beginning to increase and many residents cannot keep up with the rising cost of living. Residents already struggle to afford their housing, which is becoming even more difficult as temperatures rise, consequently forcing residents to rely on air conditioning and fans more heavily and increasing their utility bills to an unaffordable degree. At the national level, there are 2,745 crimes for every 100,000 people, but in Overtown, there are 12,386 crimes for every 100,00 people. Therefore, the crime rate in Overtown is significantly higher than the national average, and consequently residents must keep their windows sealed for safety, even when temperatures are over 100 degrees. When hurricanes strike Miami, low-income communities like Overtown have been the last to have power restored, which can be the difference between life and death for residents who have nowhere else to go other than their homes. Reducing the costs of Overtown residents’ utility bills, providing a more resilient energy system, and lessening the environmental impact of fossil fuel-based energy systems through this project would have a tremendous impact on the long-term stability and well-being of Overtown’s community. Our proposed intervention combines the strengths of community solar with the strengths of the microgrid to provide a comprehensive solution in the form of resilient, clean, and affordable energy for Overtown. It is imperative that the implementation responds to other issues of access and equity that concerns not only residents of Overtown, but the lower-income neighborhoods and areas of the City of Miami more broadly.
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WHILE A COMMUNITY SOLAR MICROGRID PROJECT IS NOT SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE UNIQUE TO OVERTOWN, OVERTOWN IS UNIQUE IN ITS NEED FOR THE PROJECT
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ADDRESS POLICY LIMITATIONS To implement this proposal, Miami must address existing policy and regulatory limitations for solar power in Florida, as was started earlier in 2018 when the Public Service Commission agreed to let third party solar companies lease solar-as-service systems to customers. FPL is a utility monopoly that has an established reputation as a company that lags in adopting innovative technology to benefit customers.23 Nevertheless, a bill for piloting a microgrid program in Florida was proposed early in 2018, calling for assessment of a solar microgrid’s “...impact on public health and safety, disaster preparedness and resilience, capital investment, net
customer savings, net utility savings or deferred investments, net job creation, impact on utility service rates and service quality, and related factors.”24 This bill focuses on vulnerable communities, which includes Overtown and other lower income neighborhoods in Miami. With the advancement of third-party leasing, the Public Service Commission will need to include provisions that encourage more clean and resilient energy innovations specifically designed for low-income consumers like those in Overtown. Energy is distributed by private utilities, but it is foremost a public good.
IDENTIFY POTENTIAL SITES There are 4,228 households in Overtown today.25 Since community solar in Overtown would prioritize renters, and 85% of households in Overtown are renter-occupied, there are 3,593 renter-occupied households. However, it is unlikely that every household in Overtown would be interested in participating in the community solar installation. If half of the households in Overtown participated, then there would be 1,796 eligible households. If we were to assume that each of the 1,796 eligible households needed a 5kW system to power their home, which requires 333 SF of roof space, then Overtown would require 598,068 SF, or 13.7 acres, of surface area to host enough solar panels to power half of the renter-occupied households in Overtown. These figures are based on current solar panel costs in Miami, according to Solar Reviews Miami.26 To accommodate the amount of panels that would be needed for a community solar installation in Overtown, we investigated possible sites that could host the panels. Overtown is 1.317 mi2, or 842.88 acres. Since a 13.7-acre site may be difficult to come by in Overtown, we explored several different options for potential sites that could host smaller-scale community solar installations.
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We considered rooftop installations, primarily atop the variety of institutions present within or near Overtown, such as Jackson Memorial Hospital, University of Miami Medical Campus, and even Booker T. Washington High School. By partnering with institutions such as these to host a community solar installation, there are opportunities for mutual benefits between the institutions and the Overtown community. We also explored the dozens of vacant lots in Overtown as a potential space for the community solar, several of which might be large enough to potentially be an option. And finally, a much bolder consideration is to place solar panels along the highway interchange that is situated above Overtown, like the example from Seoul, South Korea. Highways use an incredibly vast amount of land, and we can only imagine the potential that could be unlocked if they could be repurposed for the benefit of more than moving cars. Of these options, however, we believe that rooftop solar would be the most practical, especially given that there are already existing solar installations atop some of the Jackson Memorial Hospital roofs. Solar installations could also be built atop new large-scale developments in Overtown that lie in the pipeline.
Aronoff, Kate. 2017. “After Irma, Can Private Utilities Be Trusted to Rebuild?” Kinnear, John. 2018. “How Much Does It Cost to Install Solar on an Average U.S. House?” Solar Power Authority. Statistical Atlas. 2018. “Household Types in Overtown, Miami, Florida.” 26 Solar Reviews. 2018. “How Much Do Solar Panels Cost in Miami in 2018?” 23 24 25
Jackson Memorial Hospital
ROOFTOPS
Booker T. Washington High School
VACANT LOTS
Highway Interchange in Overtown
HIGHWAY
Solar on a highway in Seoul
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SECURE FUNDING & SUPPORT We would recommend that the City of Miami works with the Department of Energy’s Grid Modernization Laboratory Consortium for technical resources and research and development grants at the federal level. At the municipal level, resilience funding from the $400 million Miami General Obligation Bond could be allocated towards the feasibility study, perhaps as a part of the City of Miami’s resolution on climate gentrification research. Based on current practice, the microgrid infrastructure would be owned by FPL as part of the wider utility network. The City of Miami could partner with Solar United Neighbors, which is a solar cooperative that has a branch in Miami-Dade County, for the procurement of solar panels, which are cheaper when purchased in bulk. Grid allocation in Overtown would be based on equity considerations such as the ability to pay and vulnerability to power outages. We would also recommend pursuing an approach like that of New Orleans, which would involve exploring options for the services clustering model. Most solar microgrid precedents are financed through a variety of funding and subsidy sources related to clean energy, grid upgrading, and resilience. Based on the previously described calculations, we estimate that the number of solar panels that would be needed to power 1,796 households in Overtown would cost $693,729. This is based on current solar panel cost in Miami and on offers available from companies that install residential solar systems, and includes the Florida solar panel tax break, which is 30%. However, these calculations are based on the solar requirement of a typical house (5kW), which may be different for renters in multi-family housing.
Batteries attached to these systems, per kWh, cost between $400 and $750.27 This means that for all of these households to also have a backup battery, it could cost between $3.6 - $6.7 million in addition to the cost of the solar panels. However, microgrid costs vary by location and by energy demand and this calculation does not incorporate costs related to installation and maintenance. Furthermore, it does not reflect economies of scale or the detailed costing calculations of an at-scale feasibility study for a residential community solar microgrid – recalling the significantly lower cost of the Sterling, MA solar microgrid installation. Our calculations provide an estimate, and a full analysis of the cost, size requirement, and energy savings should be calculated in a comprehensive feasibility study, taking into account the 20year life cycle of today’s solar panel technology. However, if we assume that the community solar microgrid installation would cut utility bills by approximately 50% like the Coyote Ridge Solar Farm did for its 400 subscribers, then this would result in a total savings of $1,325,448 per year for Overtown residents. The installation would be paid for in 5 years, provided the energy savings were put towards paying off the solar installation, and no other subsidies or grants were involved. The possibilities for alternative models specific to Overtown residents’ interests and needs would ultimately dictate this financing structure. Additionally, it would need to incorporate additional tax credits, net metering, and further developments in the FPL grid. However, these rough calculations provide an indication of the long-term benefits for Overtown. Beyond the benefits to residents, there would be substantial savings from reduced damage during hurricanes and other disasters.
Above: Middle school students at Eagle Nest Elementary School in Orlando, FL learn about sustainable solar from SEIA staff during a field trip to Washington, D.C. Source: SEIA
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EnergySage. 2018. “How Much Does Solar Storage Cost? Understanding Solar Battery Prices.”
Above: GRID Alternatives staff and volunteers install a solar array in Long Beach, CA. Source: GRID Alternatives.
OFFER WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES IN SOLAR There is great opportunity for interested Overtown residents to partake in workforce development programs to become solar panel technicians. These positions pay, on average, $10-15/ hour, and do not require a college degree to become certified. Part of our goal for this project is wealth creation for Overtown residents through utility cost reduction, and job creation through solar would be an additional benefit. We recommend that the City of Miami and Overtown community-based organizations should partner with GRID Alternatives, who, as mentioned earlier, is a national leader in making clean, affordable solar power and solar jobs accessible to low-income communities.28 Additionally, GRID Alternatives has a program called Solar Futures that provides both classroom and hands-on solar education to K-12 students, with a focus on high school juniors and seniors, to provide opportunities to learn more about solar power and illuminate career pathways in the booming solar industry. There could be opportunities for a program of this nature at Booker T. Washington High School. GRID Alternatives also has a training program for Women in Solar, and local organizations in Overtown that focus on female empowerment, such as the CLEO Institute, Catalyst Miami, and GIRL Power, could be partners on such an initiative. The Department of Energy also provides a Solar Training Network, which partners with leading solar workforce development and training organizations to connect people interested in solar careers with the training they need to enter the industry and then connects them with solar employers who need skilled workers.29 We recommend utilizing this existing program. 28 29 30
GRID Alternatives Website. Solar Training Network, U.S. Department of Energy. “Kingsbridge Armory Community Benefits Agreement.� 2014. page 5.
Finally, there are opportunities for developers in Miami to contribute to solar workforce development programs through community benefits agreements (CBA). A successful example of this is the Kingsbridge Armory project in the Bronx in New York City.30 This project involved a large-scale redevelopment and installation of rooftop solar. A part of the CBA between the project developer and a group of local organizations created an annual $10,000 renewable energy scholarship fund for residents of the Northwest Bronx to learn to install, maintain, and, after appropriate accreditation and licensing, operate the developer’s solar power systems. The annual scholarship will be awarded throughout the duration of the CBA. As more large-scale development begins to break ground near or in Overtown, this could be a precedent for CBA negotiations that would create jobs in renewable energy for Overtown residents. It is common for people to be hesitant when approached about the benefits of solar, as the long-term cost savings can sound too good to be true. In a community like Overtown that has borne the burden of highway infrastructure and disinvestment for decades, it is incredibly important for residents to be able to trust their sources on topics such as climate change, renewable energy, and disaster preparedness. Therefore, by hiring local solar workers who are known within the community and by partnering with local community-based organizations, more Overtown residents may become interested in partaking in the benefits of solar, and the provision of jobs that pay a living wage would help countless families stay in their homes.
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05 FINAL RECOMMENDATIONS This proposal demonstrates the wide range of benefits that a community solar installation that is connected to a microgrid could have for Overtown. We hope we have demonstrated here that a more equitable, clean, and resilient energy supply is possible for this community, and the wider City of Miami. The framework precedents, community assets, and stakeholder networks exist in Overtown, and the preliminary calculations suggest that a community solar microgrid system in Overtown would provide residents with options as well as opportunities for cleaner and more resilient energy that has compound effects in terms of climate change mitigation, job creation and community partnerships. In addition, there is potential for further partnerships and research into the coupling of resilient solar with a weatherization program for Overtown homes. As reliance on air conditioning increases with rising temperatures, we will need to move away from reliance on air conditioning to cool homes through the design of homes that are weatherized to capture and retain cool air, such as traditional and hybrid cooling designs from the Bahamas and elsewhere in the tropics. Overtown’s lack of tree cover and subsequent heat island effect should also be addressed by incorporating native trees and vegetation into the landscape, to improve tree cover and natural cooling systems in the neighborhood. With a challenge as complex as climate change, we must address issues with multiple solutions that work together comprehensively.
| 20 Aerial photo of Overtown, Miami. Source: Eric Coffie, 2017.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
REFERENCES
We would like to thank everyone who helped us and offered insight that informed this project proposal and research.
Aronoff, Kate. 2017. “After Irma, Can Private Utilities Be Trusted to Rebuild?” In These Times, September 18, 2017. http:// inthesetimes.com/article/20530/irma-hurricane-climatechange-florida-utilities-microgrids.
To the Knight Foundation, thank you for your support of the Future of the American City project through the Harvard University Graduate School of Design. We greatly appreciate the opportunity to learn from Overtown and hope that our work this semester will lead to interventions that will benefit the community. To Jane Gilbert, Yoca Arditi-Rocha, and Zelalem Adefris, thank you for offering your time to speak with us and provide your insight about the challenges that Overtown, and Miami more broadly, will experience in the face of climate change. To Lawrence Barriner II and Dania Sherman, thank you for visiting our class and conducting a workshop on power mapping and identity. We learned so much from you. To Jeana Dunlap and Cathy Leff, thank you for attending our mid- and final-reviews to offer feedback on our project at multiple phases and for actively participating in our course. To Adrian Madriz, Terrance Cribbs-Lorrant, our friends at Space Called Tribe, and everyone else who we met from Overtown, a very special thank you for welcoming us into your community to learn. We truly hope that our work will be to your benefit. And to Lily Song, our fearless instructor, thank you for always being honest, provocative, supportive, and empathetic and for always pushing us to try harder and think deeper. We appreciate your thoughtfulness and guidance more than we can say.
Berke, Jeremy. 2018. “One Simple Chart Shows Why an Energy Revolution Is Coming - and Who Is Likely to Come out on Top.” Business Insider, May 8, 2018. https://www.businessinsider. com/solar-power-cost-decrease-2018-5. City of New Orleans. 2018. “Gentilly Resilience District Fact Sheet.” https://www.nola.gov/resilience/resources/factsheets/gentilly-factsheet/. Dudley, David. 2016. “To Storm-Proof Hoboken, a Microgrid.” City Lab, August 24, 2016. https://www.citylab. com/solutions/2016/08/to-storm-proof-hoboken-amicrogrid/497144/. Electricity Local. 2018. “Electricity Statistics - Miami, FL.” https://www.electricitylocal.com/states/florida/miami/. EnergySage. 2018. “How Much Does Solar Storage Cost? Understanding Solar Battery Prices.” https://www.energysage. com/solar/solar-energy-storage/what-do-solar-batteries-cost/. Eyes on the Rise. http://citizeneyes.org/app GRID Alternatives Website. https://gridalternatives.org/ Harris, Alex. 2018. “How Can We Address the Effects of Climate Change on Communities of Color?” The Miami Herald, August 13, 2018. https://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/opinioninfluencers/article216228920.html. Kahn, Brian. 2015. “Surge in ‘Danger Days’ Just Around the Corner.” Climate Central, August 12, 2015. http:// www.climatecentral.org/news/danger-days-on-rise-in-uscities-19322. Kahn, Michael W. 2018. “Bringing the Power of Community Solar to the Entire Community.” America’s Electric Cooperatives. https://www.electric.coop/sunda-bringing-power-communitysolar-entire-community/.
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“Remembering Wilma: 10 Years since Storm Left Florida Powerless.” 2015, October 23, 2015. https://wsvn.com/news/ remembering-wilma-10-years-since-storm-left-south-floridapowerless/.
“Kingsbridge Armory Community Benefits Agreement.” 2014. http://www.forworkingfamilies.org/sites/pwf/files/ documents/Kingsbridge%20FINAL%20Exhibit%20A%20-%20 Community%20Benefits%20Program.pdf.
Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). 2018. “Community Solar.” https://www.seia.org/initiatives/community-solar.
Kinnear, John. 2018. “How Much Does It Cost to Install Solar on an Average U.S. House?” Solar Power Authority. https://www. solarpowerauthority.com/how-much-does-it-cost-to-installsolar-on-an-average-us-house/. Lantero, Allison. 2014. “How Microgrids Work.” https://www. energy.gov/articles/how-microgrids-work. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). 2018. “Patterns and Projections of High Tide Flooding Along the U.S. Coastline Using a Common Impact Threshold.” https:// tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/publications/techrpt86_PaP_of_ HTFlooding.pdf. Neal, David J. 2018. “That Hurricane Irma Cleanup Surcharge Coming to Your FPL Bill? It’s Been Turned off.” The Miami Herald, January 17, 2018. https://www.miamiherald.com/ news/business/article195062869.html. Nehemas, Nicholas. 2017. The Miami Herald, September 21, 2017. https://www.miamiherald.com/news/weather/ hurricane/article174521756.html. Olinsky-Paul, Todd. 2017. “How One Small U.S. Town Will Save Millions with a Microgrid.” Renewable Energy World. https:// www.renewableenergyworld.com/articles/print/volume-20/ issue-4/features/microgrids/how-one-small-us-town-willsave-millions-with-a-microgrid.html. Powers, Alexis. 2016. “How Renewables Will Help New Orleans Keep the Lights On.” Office of Energy Efficiency & Renwable Energy. https://www.energy.gov/eere/articles/howrenewables-will-help-new-orleans-keep-lights.
Solar Reviews. 2018. “How Much Do Solar Panels Cost in Miami in 2018?” https://www.solarreviews.com/solar-panels/solarpanel-cost/cost-of-solar-panels-in-florida/solar-panels-cost-inmiami-dade-county/miami/. Solar Training Network, U.S. Department of Energy. https:// www.energy.gov/eere/solar/solar-training-network Southeast Florida Regional Compact on Climate Change. 2015. “Unified Sea Level Rise Projection.” http://www. southeastfloridaclimatecompact.org /wp-content/ uploads/2015/10/2015-Compact-Unified-Sea-Level-RiseProjection.pdf. State of Florida Public Service Commission,. 2018. “PSC Declaratory Statement Allows Residential Solar Equipment Leases.” http://www.psc.state.fl.us/Home/ NewsLink?id=11614. Statistical Atlas. 2018. “Household Types in Overtown, Miami, Florida.” https://statisticalatlas.com/neighborhood/Florida/ Miami/Overtown/Household-Types. Union of Concerned Scientists. 2017. “Hurricanes and Climate Change.” https://www.ucsusa.org/global-warming/scienceand-impacts/impacts/hurricanes-and-climate-change.html#. XBcPUxNKimU. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. n.d. “Community Planning and Development - Affordable Housing.” Accessed November 30, 2018. https://www.hud.gov/program_ offices/comm_planning/affordablehousing/. Woods, Elisa. 2018. “Florida Bill Calls for $10M Solar Plus Storage Microgrid Pilot in Wake of Hurricane Irma.” Microgrid Knowledge, January 4, 2018. https://microgridknowledge. com/solar-plus-storage-microgrid-florida/.
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