California Is About to Test Its First Solar Canals

[sl8]

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/california-is-about-to-test-its-first-solar-canals-180979637/

California Is About to Test Its First Solar Canals

The innovative project is a win for water, energy, air and climate

Roger Bales, The Conversation

February 25, 2022

Mounting evidence suggests the western United States is now in its worst megadrought in at least 1,200 years. Groundwater supplies are being overpumped in many places, and the dryness, wildfires and shrinking water supplies are making climate change personal for millions of people.

As an engineer, I have been working with colleagues on a way to both protect water supplies and boost renewable energy to protect the climate.

We call it the solar-canal solution, and it’s about to be tested in California.

About 4,000 miles of canals transport water to some 35 million Californians and 5.7 million acres of farmland across the state. As we explained in a 2021 study, covering these canals with solar panels would reduce evaporation of precious water – one of California’s most critical resources – and help meet the state’s renewable energy goals, while also saving money.

[...]

[Liberty Belle]

1. Great idea, but one important issue not addressed is people falling into canals and drowning.

That's a common problem especially with migrants. I worry people may not see someone being swept away down a canal with the panels covering them. Could they also install cameras and/or sensor to detect if someone falls in and notify authorities?

[hunter]

5. It could be some nice shade for the bike path along the canal.

Alas, they closed the bike paths a long time ago for liability reasons. There were concerns that bicyclists might fall into the canal and drown.

Nobody wants to pull dead bicyclists out of the pumping station screens, or think about them whenever they turn on the water tap.

If we are going to build out our solar capacity I think it's best we do it on land that's already been developed. This project qualifies. I reject all solar and wind development on previously undeveloped land.

Solar power is already fairly well developed in California. As I post this about half our electricity is solar. Part of the reason solar and wind energy work so well in California is that the system that moves water around the state can source and sink a lot of electrical power, a capacity that is used to stabilize the electric grid with minimal fossil fuel inputs. That capacity will shrink as drought becomes more common.

We still have to burn dangerous amounts of fossil fuels, especially natural gas, whenever the sun is not shining or the wind is not blowing. That's my major objection to elaborate wind and solar schemes -- these schemes will only prolong our dependence on natural gas.

[NNadir]

2. We're saved!!!!

[Finishline42]

4. From the linked article

In a 2021 study, we showed that covering all 4,000 miles of California’s canals with solar panels would save more than 65 billion gallons of water annually by reducing evaporation. That’s enough to irrigate 50,000 acres of farmland or meet the residential water needs of more than 2 million people.

65 billion gallons of water per year is only enough for 2 million people??? Just shows the enormity of the problem that the West is facing.