SMALL ISLAND, BIG SOLAR

SALT Energy completes Florida’s largest private rooftop array

Badia Spices has completed the installation of a rooftop solar array on its 300,000 square foot distribution and production facility in Sweetwater, Florida, making it the largest privatelyowned solar project in Florida as of February 2023.

The 3.24-MWDC system was designed and installed by SALT Energy of Marathon. The array comprises 40 inverters and 7,200 solar panels and is capable of producing more than 3,240,000 watts DC of power output, which will offset approximately 80% of the facility’s electricity consumption.

This is the second Badia Spices facility to undergo a transition to solar power. In April 2019, SALT Energy completed installation of a 529-kWDC rooftop system at the 100,000-squarefoot Badia Spices warehouse in Doral.

“As a leading family-owned Hispanic food company, we are proud of our commitment to build sustainable and environmentally responsible practices to help green our supply chain and decrease our carbon footprint,” said Joseph (Pepe) Badia, president of Badia Spices.

Badia and his wife Nancy also contracted SALT to install one of the largest residential solar arrays in Florida on their waterfront home in Miami’s Coconut Grove. Leading the way in rooftop solar, Badia Spices plans to further decrease its carbon footprint by continuing to add solar projects to its other facilities in the coming years.

The solar array at Badia’s Sweetwater Warehouse is producing at a rate of 5,045,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per year. This is equivalent to 696 homes' electricity use for one year, and will result in 3,941 tons of

CO2 emissions reduction each year. SALT Energy’s partnership with SunPower and PanelClaw for this project brought a technology-leading solar modules company together with a top flat roof racking provider in North America using state-of-the-art engineering practices.

SunPower – and now Maxeon, which was spun off in August 2020 – are recognized as sustainability leaders in the solar industry. SunPower’s "Beneficial by Design" philosophy aims to be a regenerative force on society and the environment. From their industry standard Cradle to Cradle Certified Maxeon line of interdigitated back contact (IBC) solar cells to their Zero Waste to Landfill manufacturing sites, SunPower and Maxeon are among industry leaders in environmental stewardship. The Maxeon IBC solar panel product lines are some of the top-rated panels in the industry for efficiency and degradation rates while offering excellent durability backed by 37 years of engineering. This culminates in a power and performance warranty which was recently extended to 40 years.

The early coordination between SALT and Badia on the project included the HVAC system being moved off of the rooftop during remodeling as well as removing significant shading effects and setbacks from rooftop equipment that would have greatly limited the solar potential of the roof.

“The requirement by our customer to avoid roof membrane penetrations for anchoring the array to preserve the warranty, coupled with the hurricane wind load design requirements in Miami-Dade County, posed the two greatest technical challenges for our Badia Spices project,” said David Kaul, SALT’s vice president of engineering and operations.

“We chose PanelClaw because they have the industry’s most advanced, peer-reviewed engineering models for design of solar arrays on flat roofs,” said Kaul. In addition to incorporating PanelClaw’s state-ofthe-art racking system, SALT turned to Anchor Products for roof anchors that attach directly to a fully adhered roofing system by hot air welding, rather than relying on penetrating roofing screws.

SALT completed the project construction in eight months. Commissioning occurred in November 2022, and the utility granted permission to operate on Dec. 1, 2022. There were many challenges to overcome in order to obtain required approvals from the utility and the local permitting authority. Through a spirit of cooperation between Badia Spices personnel, utility personnel, the local authorities and SALT, SunPower and PanelClaw, the many challenges were overcome smoothly, leading to a successful outcome and a showcase project.

In Miami-Dade County alone, there are hundreds of acres of unused logistic center rooftops. With the tax savings allowable by the Inflation Reduction Act, there has never been a better time to put the unused rooftop space to work.

“With this project we have proven that large-scale rooftop solar is viable in South Florida,” said Kaul. “We have shown that we can meet the code requirements for hurricane wind loads, and preserve membrane roof warranties while dramatically greening up the supply chain. We look forward to doing many more.”

— Contributed

Wildlife Society receives $5,000 First Horizon grant

Keys Watercolor Society to host two-day workshop

The Florida Keys Wildlife Society has received $5,000 in grant funding from the First Horizon Foundation for 2023. This contribution will be used to fund outreach and education costs and community events hosted by the society during 2023, such as the popular Run with Deer 5K race, Outdoor Week events, and lectures.

First Horizon Bank leadership presented society board members with a “big” check on Feb. 24 at the Florida Keys National Wildlife Refuges Nature Center on Big Pine Key.

Pictured, from left: Michele White, SVP, First Horizon Bank; wildlife society board members Shirley Gun, Kathy Rhodes and Ed Rhodes; Colleen Fuller, VP, First Horizon Bank. Photo contributed.

Reef health on the agenda for library speaker series

Scientist Karen Neely will speak about "Chasing Unicorns: Finding Solutions to the Decline of Florida's Coral Reef" at 2 p.m. on Thursday, March 16 as part of the Marathon Library’s “Coffee, Cookies & Conversation” speaker series.

The talk is free and open to all and will take place at the Marathon library. Neely is a research scientist at Nova Southeastern University. Based out of the Florida Keys, she has been studying Florida's corals for over 20 years. Her work has focused on documenting the decline of Endangered Species Act-listed species, pioneering coral rescue efforts with the iconic pillar coral, developing in-water medicines for disease-affected corals, and advancing the science of coral spawning.

Marathon Friends of the Library seeks donated books for sale

The Marathon Friends of the Library are having a book sale at the Marathon library on Friday, March 31 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday, April 1 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. To donate books or volunteer, contact Bruce Rumage at 912-634-6277.

The Florida Keys Watercolor Society will present a two-day watercolor workshop with popular instructor Charles Passarelli from West Palm Beach. This will be Passarelli’s ninth year of coming to Marathon for a March workshop. Workshop dates are Thursday and Friday, March 16-17 at San Pablo parish hall from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days. Spaces are limited. Artists must have their own supplies. The cost is $185 per artist. Call Julie at 305-731-3046 for more info. To learn more about Charles Passarelli’s art, visit passarelli-artcom.weebly.com.

MHS upperclassmen to hold Powder Puff football game

On Thursday, March 16 at 7 p.m., the Marathon High School classes of 2023 and 2024 will host a Powder Puff football game pitting seniors against juniors. The game will include concessions with the Gonzalez family, a snow cone truck and a halftime performance by dance and cheerleading groups. Attendees are encouraged to wear their class shirts. Tickets are $5.

Marathon Garden Club invites scholarship applicants

Marathon High School collegebound seniors are invited to apply for the Nancy Miller Garden Club Scholarship. The scholarship is for a student with an interest in the environment, horticulture and science who intends to major in the areas of STEM. The application is online under the “CCAPS Scholarship Opportunities” tab on the Marathon High School website, with additional hard copies available at the high school. Applications are due Thursday, April 20, and the award will be presented on Class Night.

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