July 19, 2010

Currently in Oregon we have the opportunity, and the economic and environmental incentives, to transition from much of the damaging fossil fuel plants – mostly coal – that we now rely upon for more than half our electricity, to efficient and new renewable generating technologies.

Solar thermal systems heat water, using energy collected from the sun. They work by raising temperatures in tubes of liquid, which loop through water-holding tanks. The systems are said to have potential for large water customers like athletic centers with heated pools, college dorms, agricultural food processors, and most notably hotels, which can spend between 50 percent and 60 percent of their utility costs on water heating alone. Businesses already using solar thermal systems include Willamette University, East Portland Community Center and the Mt. Hood Athletic Club in Sandy, Oregon.

Officials say their goal is to expand solar thermal use in Oregon, which lags behind photovoltaic, which turns solar energy into electricity. “It hasn’t caught on as fast. Photovoltaic has had a lot more organized effort to promote it but solar thermal — dollar for dollar — has a lot more potential to produce energy, " said Rob Del Mar, policy analyst for the Oregon Department of Energy.

Read the full article from Sustainable Business Oregon.

Read more about solar energy in Oregon in my Energy Plan.

http://www.johnkitzhaber.com/2010/07/19/solar-thermal-heating-systems/