Port of San Diego to Dedicate New System for Generating Energy

Monday, 14 September 2009
Contact: John Gilmore (619) 686-7206

The Port of San Diego is set to dedicate its new photovoltaic system, which has more than 100 solar panels that are helping generate power for the Port Administration Building on Pacific Highway. The system is designed to provide a clean, renewable energy source and decrease the Port’s carbon footprint.

The dedication will be held on Wednesday, September 16, 2009, beginning at 10 a.m. atop the Port Administration Building’s annex, at 3165 Pacific Highway.

The brief dedication ceremony will include remarks by Charlie Wurster, the Port’s President/CEO; Board of Port Commissioners Chairman Stephen P. Cushman; David Merk, Director of the Port’s Environmental Services Department; Dan Sullivan, founder and CEO of Sullivan Solar Power, the company that installed the panels; and Irene Stillings, Executive Director of the California Center for Sustainable Energy.

The $210,000 photovoltaic system was paid for with money from the Port’s Environmental Fund and is generating 24 kilowatts (kW), or enough energy to power about 15 homes. The Board of Port Commissioners has approved plans to expand the Port’s use of renewable energy by installing another 30 kW photovoltaic system on the new Broadway Pier Cruise Ship Terminal and a 50 (kW) system on the Port’s General Services building in National City.

The renewable energy initiatives support the Port’s Green Port Program, which unifies the Port’s environmental sustainability goals in six key areas: water, energy, air, waste management, sustainable development, and sustainable business practices.

As part of the Green Port Program, the Port has established long-term goals and the progress is evaluated annually in each area. For more information on the Green Port Program and other environmental initiatives at the Port, please visit the Environmental Section of this web site.